Be Human
by starophie
Summary: "My friends need me, Bruce. They need me to nut up – do the rescuing for once – and I can't, I can't when I'm...this." Kenzi has a choice to make. Does she sacrifice everything to become Fae – and save her family – or can she relearn how to be human? Kenzi-centric, no overt pairings, slightly AU post-s3.
1. Prologue

happy lost girl day! of course, i didn't come up with this idea until the webisodes, which i didn't watch until last week...sighs. so it'll probably be au, and depending on where jay goes this season, i may or may not include elements of the first couple episodes. we'll see. this story will be fairly short, just leading up to when bo comes back.

i'll try to post on sundays, but i am tied up in a few stories right now, so i may be delayed.

thanks to you for reading, and please let me know what you think! peace out.

* * *

A gentle breeze blew in through the open window, and orange-red leaves outside swirled in the autumn dusk. Lit ethereally by the glow of candles, three robed women stole into the room where the new baby slumbered.

Holding her flaming taper in one creamy hand, the first woman lowered her white velvet hood. Her silver curls glinted mystically under flickering illumination. She ran the thumb of her now-empty hand across her distended lower lip, and began to twist a strand of saliva from her mouth. But as the clear fluid left her tongue, it turned into opalescent fibers, waiting to be spun into thread.

The second sister took the thread from the first and applied it to a spinning wheel that had appeared. She took her seat, her hood down as well, which revealed the garland of camellias wreathed in her braids. She placed her candle to the side to light her work. Her right foot, twice as large as the other, pressed the treadle back and forth to spin the fibers into yarn. As she spun, the yarn took shape, pooling in glittering coils of rope upon the floor.

The last woman lowered her own hood, and her layered necklaces of silver and gold caught the light. She picked the thread up from where her sister had let it drop, and knotted it at one end with a roll of her enlarged thumb. Examining the thread carefully, she began tying knots at strategic points along the line before looping it around the heddle of her loom. Once she'd secured the warp threads, she sat and began to wrap the remaining cord onto her shuttle, and then swiftly flew the wooden tool across the loom, creating the weft.

When all had finished, a shimmering blanket remained. It was supple and soft, and looked to be between shades of white and gray. But when it hit a shaft of moon just _so_, it glimmered and sparkled like a thousand diamonds had been woven into it. The first sister took the blanket from the last, and stepped up to the crib of the infant they were there for.

"Here now, sweet babe," the _Rozanica_ said, lifting the child into her arms and swaddling her with the new blanket. The baby fussed slightly, but only to sigh and give a small yawn before falling back to sleep. The _Rozanica_ laid the girl back down in her crib and beckoned her sisters.

"Bela, what gift do you bestow upon this _devotchka_?" the youngest one asked of the eldest.

"I give this child the gift of wisdom and wit," Bela replied, touching a long finger to the baby's forehead. "May she be both bright _and_ smart." A stream of white light pulsed from the old woman's hand, and the baby gurgled as if dreaming.

"And you, Nikita? What is your gift?" Bela asked, ignoring the third sister.

"My gift is love and loyalty," Nikita answered. She replaced her sister, but did not mimic. Instead, she unfolded the blanket, placing a spindly finger on the baby's newly-exposed chest, right above her heart. "She will be gentle with the innocent, and fiercely protect her friends from the immoral." With those words, Nikita's appendage glowed a deep scarlet, and the light transferred from the witch to the babe in the span of a breath.

After returning the blanket to its former state, Nikita stepped back next to Bela, allowing the third sister to take her place next to the child.

"And what is her fate, Chyornaya? What have you in store for her?" Bela's voice trembled only slightly, betraying her true fear for the helpless baby.

The sash of the window slammed down as the third sister began to convulse with energy. Power poured from her in waves, and bursts of black spurted from her outstretched palms.

"She will be tried," Chyornaya rasped, body quivering erratically. "She will be hurt, but she will survive. Again and again, she will survive. And she will be given a choice – she will choose her own Fate. Whatever her choice, she will survive. She is intelligent, yes, and loyal – but she is a Warrior. She will make her own path, and she will prosper. This is my will."

Streams of thick black smoke enveloped both their sister and the crib as Bela and Nikita watched in immobile shock. Though both women had lived nearly two millennia, they had never seen a display like this from their sister. Nor, truly, had they ever heard that kind of a reading.

"Choose her own Fate?" Nikita murmured as the fog dissipated.

"If it is as Naya wishes, we cannot intervene," Bela responded.

Nikita nodded, and grabbed hold of her wheel. With a sharp turn, she was gone. In the confusion of the smoke, Chyornaya had taken her loom and left as well. It was only Bela and the baby left, now. The wizened Goddess turned her hood back up, and crept over to the side of the crib.

The baby remained undisturbed, as if she'd been completely unaware that a major event was happening right beside her all night. Bela allowed herself a soft smile, and she smoothed back a tiny golden curl from the child's face.

"Rest, sweet Kanza," she murmured. "You will need your strength."

With a last look at the baby, Bela shook her head slightly and disappeared.

Kenzi squirmed, a tiny fist reaching out of her swaddle to stretch over her head. She was still innocent, and unaware of what was to come. The next two and a half decades would be tough on the girl, but it was as the Fates themselves had decreed – she would survive.


	2. The Meeting

hey guys! happy lost girl day :)

this picks up right after webisode 1, so if you haven't seen that, go watch it on youtube (or watch the s4 preshow ;). 4x01 was...intense, and i don't think i'll be including the particulars of that in this piece. also, because i'm american, i technically haven't seen s4 yet ;)

hope you enjoy!

* * *

Kenzi stumbled, the heel of her boot having caught on the last plank of the bridge. "Dammit!" She hobbled over to the edge of the path and grabbed hold of the railing, bending her leg up to inspect the damage. Unfortunately for Kenzi, and for her super-hot new kicks, the heel was broken. And because the height differential between her legs now was, like, six inches, both shoes had to go.

"Goodbye, babies," Kenzi said mournfully as she unzipped the boots and put them against a tree. "It was nice knowing you."

She glanced back over her shoulder, biting her lip. Bruce had been a great companion, sweet and caring, and she was touched that he took Six's job in her place. Bruce had sworn he wouldn't let Kenzi go to the druid alone, but Kenzi knew she needed to see Massimo by herself. That's just how things were going to be from now on.

She tugged her phone from her pocket, checking her messages. There were three texts from Hale, whom she'd contacted to let him know that not only was she okay, but it was due in large part to him. She patted her other pocket, making sure that the Twig of Zamora was still there. Hale had been a colossal dick of late, but that didn't mean Kenzi didn't appreciate his help. He wanted to know where she was, though, which Kenzi didn't feel the need to disclose.

There was also a text from Bo, but it had sent a while ago – it struck Kenzi as a bit odd that Bo wouldn't have checked in since. And she hadn't texted Dyson, because she didn't know what shape he was in. Kenzi swallowed back tears as she thought of the man she looked at like a brother, but she didn't have time to worry about him, now. She was at Massimo's cottage.

It was a quaint little building, thatched roof and all. Ivy crawled up the stone walls, and the front door had a little porthole window. Kenzi walked up to the door and knocked sharply.

"Kenzi," Massimo greeted almost instantly, leaning casually against the doorframe. "So glad you made it."

"Let's get down to business, druid," Kenzi said, following him inside. "I need to be Fae, and you claim you've got the mojo to make that happen. What's the deal?"

"Deal? I'm not sure what you mean, Kenz," Massimo answered, a smug smirk on his face.

"Don't play coy with me, buster. There's always a catch with you people. So, lay it on me."

"Oh, you mean, what am I asking for in return for this favor?" Massimo grinned. "Well, another kiss wouldn't hurt."

Kenzi grimaced. "Be serious, dude, or I'm taking my fine ass elsewhere."

Massimo chuckled. "If you insist. I want…a favor. Once you get your powers, you'll be strong. I reserve the right to ask for your assistance when I need it."

Kenzi bit back a sharp retort about how strong she was already, because she was having doubts. When she'd been a street kid, she'd had full faith in the ability of her body to ward off attackers and run away from trouble. Ever since she'd met Bo, though, that faith was constantly called into question. And though she could – and had, many times – held her own in battle, she was concerned about this new evil. She didn't trust herself to be able to help save her friends _and_ ward off the entire realm of Fae alone. So instead of a quip, she said, "You've got yourself a deal."

"Wonderful. Now, let's talk about what I will need you to do."

"What?" Kenzi asked. "I give you a favor, you give me the Fae juice. What gives, Massimo?" Also, she wondered, did all Dark Fae want favors from humans? This was the second deal she'd made like this, and the Morrigan still hadn't called in hers.

"I'm a sorcerer, not a magician," Massimo said in exasperation. "I can't just wave a wand and turn you into Fae." He gave her a look like he thought she was being ridiculous, which she returned. "I need some ingredients for a potion. You want this done right, don't you?"

"Oy vey," Kenzi muttered to herself. More loudly, she said, "Fine, fine. What's my mission, should I choose to accept it?"

Massimo pulled a small drawer open, and took out a worn-looking scroll and a small yellow glass bottle with some sort of medallion on it. He set the bottle aside and unfurled the scroll. "Ah, okay," he said, nodding. "Okay. I need you to get the following items: a link in the chain that binds the world, the peak of the insurmountable mountain, and the soul of the one who cannot die. Bring me those things in this runeglass—" he picked up the bottle and held it out to Kenzi, who stared at it in confusion and wonderment "—and I can make you Fae."

Kenzi looked at him, one eyebrow raised and lips pursed to the side. "Could you maybe dumb that down for the human, Mr. Riddler? I don't have time for mind games. And also, where am I supposed to find all this shit?"

"I can't give you all the answers, Kenzi," Massimo sighed, looking genuinely apologetic. Then his face grew stern. "To become Fae means more than just taking a potion and gaining powers. You have to learn to be dependent on yourself. As a pet, I'm sure that's hard for you to understand, but—"

"I'm _not_ a pet," Kenzi hissed, ice blue eyes sharp with rage. "And I am dependent on myself. How the hell else do you think I'm still alive?"

"If you'd stayed in the human world, that might be true," Massimo answered. "However, in our world, you've been protected by your so-called friends the whole time. Your owner had to claim you, didn't she?"

Kenzi's face darkened, and she held back her fury just slightly. "Why do keep calling her that? Bo is my best friend, my _sister_," she spat, resisting the urge to actually spew saliva in his eyes. "No one owns me but _me_."

Massimo gave her a smirk, again, and Kenzi lost her shit. "What the fuck is wrong with you?" she screamed, punching him square in the mouth. Massimo staggered backward, smile still firmly affixed to his face. "What have humans done to Fae that make you all treat us like utter shit? Bo's unaligned because she can't stand any of you – that's why we're a team, because she treats me like a person." Kenzi had tried to trade a few more blows with Massimo, ducking away from his but not landing any herself. Now she was panting and hugging her sides, the adrenaline and fury slowly draining from her body. "Maybe this is a bad idea. I want nothing to do with you."

"What about your friends, then?" Massimo asked. His grin was still there, but the irony had faded from it slightly. "Who will be there for them, like they've been there for you?"

Dyson's words to her after they'd gotten their own bodies back suddenly sprang to Kenzi's mind. _You're weak and pathetic_. He'd also called her "so _bloody_ human" when she'd cursed him with Baba Yaga. Then, in her head, it was Trick's voice, saying that she was a distraction and a liability to Bo, and telling someone else that she wasn't "one of us." Hale's voice, cold and detached, as he mocked her in front of the Morrigan and called her a terrorist – his face, as he scowled at his Ash bodyguards to remove her from his sight. Val, Hale's sister, at dinner with his family, remarking that the Santiagos were above "cheap, ill-bred mortals." Bo's lady love, Lauren, had probably said the most number of hurtful things – she'd told Bo that Kenzi was immature, irresponsible, and clingy, and told Kenzi herself that she was selfish and unhelpful.

She was right, Kenzi thought. They all were, but maybe Lauren most of all. Lauren, the other human – if she thought so poorly of Kenzi, maybe Bo was the only thing standing between the Fae and a Kenzi buffet. Kenzi recalled something else Lauren had said, back when they were trying to save Bo, Dyson, and Tamsin from the Morrigan's Tiger Beat parasite. She'd gone off on a tangent about how everyone else let Kenzi off the hook, that they all doted on her, and that Kenzi herself was just riding the coattails and freeloading off Bo and the gang's joint hospitality. Kenzi had often tried to console herself with the notion that it was just jealous Fae that told her she was worthless, but even Bruce had said that she had "some deep-seated misconceptions about just how little power" she had over people.

Kenzi felt a cold, hard knot begin to form itself in her chest, and she felt like she was going to be sick. If anything happened to her friends – her _family_ – because she didn't do what she had to to stop it, she would never forgive herself. _Grow the fuck up, Kenzi,_ her stepfather had always said. He never had time for her songs, or stories about ponies, or ballet. He wanted her to grow up and get out. Well, Kenzi got out, but she never really grew up. She was playful and non-committal by nature, and years on the streets, fending for herself, made the spoiling and petting nature of her BFF and company very appealing stuff. But they were all right. Kenzi had become a burden, and a bother, and she needed to pay her dues.

"Okay," she said slowly. "When do I start?"

Massimo handed her the bottle, the scroll, and a small slip of paper. "Good luck, Kenzi," he said, and Kenzi almost believed he was being sincere.

"See ya soon, King Dickface," she snarked with a wave. She let herself out, and when she was back outside, she looked at the crumpled piece of paper in her hand.

"Go to Buyan," she read aloud. "Buyan? As in, 'Isle of Buyan'?"

As Kenzi was contemplating the ordeal it would be to get to the mythological island known for disappearing at will, the ground fell out from underneath her feet.


	3. Welcome to Buyan

hello lovers! hope you canadians loved "lovers. apart." - i should get to watch it in a couple hours ;)

and i hope you like this chapter! i am home for thanksgiving now, but i'll be traveling back to school next sunday, so i might not get to post. if not sunday, chapter three will be up on monday. love y'all!

* * *

"Holy shitballs," Kenzi exclaimed, landing on her ass in the sand and letting go of the items she carried. "_Ow_," she whined, standing up and massaging the pain from her glutes. "That was not a nice landing, you douche! Great, Kenz, now you're yelling at the sky. Okay, okay, focus," she coached herself. "Where the fuck are you?"

Kenzi looked around. She stood on a small beach, the water surrounding her crystalline and blue. Behind her, a steep cliff rose in the distance, covered in lush grasses and flora of all sorts. Up a ways, there was a squat, circular tent, with smoke coming from the top.

"Okay, I'll go ask for directions," Kenzi said. Scrubbing her pants of sand with her palms and picking up the bottle and scroll, she walked to the edge of the sand and began hiking up. Thankfully for Kenzi and her shoeless-feet, there were steps cut into the side of the cliff, and they wound from the shore to the very top.

"Ooh, that's more workout in one day than I get in a year," Kenzi panted, having finally reached the door of the building. She paused for a moment to catch her breath, then knocked sharply on the door. No answer. She knocked again, and then thrice, but still, no one came to the door.

So Kenzi, being Kenzi, tried the handle. It pulled.

Cautiously, she crept inside, looking anxiously around for any monsters or otherwise non-humanoid creatures lurking about. But the yurt was only one room, and Kenzi didn't see anyone – or anything – so she relaxed a bit. There was a table by the door, and she set down the runeglass and scroll. The table was already covered in parchment scrolls and books of all sizes, reminding Kenzi strongly of Trick's desk. She felt a sharp pang when she thought of him. Not that she put much stock by The Morrigan, but what if Trick _was_ dead? What would she do – worse yet, what would _Bo_ do? Trick felt like he was her grandfather, but he was Bo's blood kin. Kenzi swallowed hard. This was yet another reason to be Fae. She needed to take care of her sister, and she needed to avenge Trick.

But first, she needed to figure out where she was, and what she was supposed to do here. On the top of the pile on the table was a scroll, tied fancily with red ribbon. Kenzi unknotted the binding and unrolled the parchment. It was a map, drawn and colored in beautifully, but the header was what caught Kenzi's attention.

"_Isle of Buyan_," Kenzi whispered. "I should not still be surprised that this stuff is real."

Kenzi had been told of this particular island due to a fear she'd had when she was a little girl. When her father was still alive, she would hide in her parents' bed whenever the wind was particularly strong. It would beat against the glass of her windows, and she was afraid that it was coming to steal her away. But her father told her about the three brothers of the wind, created by Perun, the god of thunder and lightning.

Vostochno, the Eastern Wind, was the oldest and most powerful of the brothers. His wind brought autumn rain, biting cold, and caused widespread devastation. He constantly fought with the youngest brother, Zapadno, who was the Wind of the West. Zapadno was kind, bringing spring flowers to life and billowing sails of ships. All year long, they pushed each other back and forth until Severno, the middle brother, came down from the North to separate them and blanket the Earth with snow.

Though Kenzi still worried, she was always less afraid when she was snuggled into her father's chest, hearing him whisper "_son teper, ninotchka_." Her mother hemmed and hawed, saying that "big girls need to sleep in their own beds," but she'd always caved into Ilya and Kenzi's twin blue gazes. Of course, when he passed away and Masha married Boris, everything changed. Sometimes, Kenzi liked to think that she could still hear his voice. Though he'd always spoken to her in Russian, she often imagined his thick rumbly baritone saying "sleep now, my little precious one" instead.

Kenzi shook her head. It wouldn't do to get all caught up in memories when there were tasks to be done. She pulled a low wooden stool over to the table and sat, looking at the map more closely. Almost immediately, her finger found the yurt, painted in with multicolored patches and tiny gray curlicues of smoke. Beside it was a small river, which Kenzi hadn't noticed on her way up to the yurt. She figured, then, that it was on the other side of the dwelling, and used that to orient herself. She found the shore, and the steps, and noted the way back should she need it. But now she was back to where she started, with the thing of not knowing where to go.

"Much as it pains me—" Kenzi was, once again, talking to herself, but she stopped as she heard a soft scratching sound. As she stopped talking, the noise stopped, and Kenzi looked around suspiciously.

"W-who's there?" she called. "Come out, whoever – or whatever, I won't judge – you are!"

She paused with baited breath, and after a moment, the sound began again. It was accompanied by some sort of jingling, similar to metal tags clinking together. Out of the shadows crept a small tomcat, his gingery fur standing up on his back. He was missing part of an ear, and his green eyes were narrowed in distrust.

"Hey there, buddy," Kenzi coaxed. "I'm totally friendly, I swear."

As if he understood her, he came forward more, and tentatively walked over to where she sat. Kenzi reached out a hand, fingers relaxed, to let him check her out. He licked it, nudged it, and then rubbed his head underneath it. Kenzi laughed and scratched him behind the ears.

"You got a name, cat?" she asked. She felt for his tags, and turned them in the light. "Kotofei Ivanovich," she read. "Mind if I just call you Ivan? All these Russian names get kinda formal after a while."

Kenzi thought for a minute that he had nodded, but then she decided that he just wanted some more petting. That, of course, she was happy to oblige him with.

After a while, Ivan made his way into Kenzi's lap. Kenzi had turned her focus back to the map, but was still idly scratching Ivan between the ears.

"Much as it pains me to admit," she began again, though this time directed at Ivan, "I think I need to do some research. Do you know what any of this stuff means?"

Kenzi unrolled the scroll that Massimo had given her. "Link that binds the world? Peak of the insurmountable mountain? Soul of the one who cannot die? I mean, what the shit?"

Ivan leapt gracefully onto the table, his collar ringing merrily as he stepped amongst the various objects. One of his paws landed on a book, and he pushed it towards Kenzi.

"Do you want me to look in this one?" Kenzi asked, only mildly astonished. After all, she'd met some crazy Fae in her time.

This time, she was sure that Ivan nodded. So Kenzi shrugged and picked up the book.

"_A Traveler's Guide to Buyan_?" Kenzi asked incredulously. "You've got to be kidding." Cracking the spine, Kenzi began to thumb through. "Alatyr Stone, The…Dove, Book of the…King of the Beasts, King of the Birds…oh, this looks promising! Holy Mountain, page 449."

Kenzi turned to the proper section and began to read aloud.

_Holy Mountain is the former home of the Gods, who were dispersed after The Great War. In order to step onto Holy Mountain, one must be Holy or escorted up by one who is Holy. Holy Mountain is currently only inhabited by the Indrik (see King of the Beasts)._

Kenzi immediately flipped to the page listed, and read from there.

_The King of the Beasts, known as the Indrik, is an animal that resides atop Holy Mountain (see Holy Mountain). The Indrik is a large creature with the legs of a deer, body of a bull, and head of a horse. The Indrik also has a single horn on its snout, similar in size and shape to that of a rhinoceros. All the Indrik's power lies in its horn. It is said that grated Indrik horn, if added to a potion, can produce amplified power in the consumer. No Fae has ever tried to secure the Indrik horn and lived to tell the tale._

Kenzi was paler than normal, and she sat back. "Holy shit," she said shakily. "I have to get _that_?"

Ivan hopped back into her lap and rubbed against her. _It'll be okay_, he seemed to say.

"Thanks, buddy," Kenzi said, petting him with her left hand. "Okay, what else? The…link that binds the world. Well," she mused, "a link is part of a chain, right? So maybe it's a physical link. Do you know anything about the world being chained up?"

Kenzi heard herself say that, and shook her head. "No, that doesn't make any sense. It's not the world that's chained…something is chained to the world? Or, maybe, the world is protected from something…"

Ivan meowed, and got back onto the desk. His paw found a spot on the map, and he mewed again.

"What's that?" Kenzi asked. "The Sun Palace?" She looked it up in her book, and found it under Palace of the Sun.

_The Palace of the Sun is the former home of Dažbog, the Sun God. Every morning, he would ride his chariot across the sky, and in the evening, he would return home. His three daughters, the Zoryi, are the patrons of the Stars, and are in charge of guarding over Simargl (see Doomsday Hound). They still reside on Buyan._

"Yeah, _Doomsday Hound_ isn't ominous at all," Kenzi muttered, turning to the indicated page.

_The Doomsday Hound, Simargl, is chained to the star Polaris of the constellation Ursa Minor. It is unknown why or how the two became conjoined, but it is said that if the chain should break, the Hound will devour the Bear and the Universe will collapse._

"And I'm the one who has to break the chain? That's fantastic," Kenzi said. She was tapping her leg, one of her many nervous habits. "Jesus, this is pants-peeing levels of terrifying. But I'm gonna do it, for Bo. I just…god, I wish she was here. She'd know what to do."

Ivan purred at her, and Kenzi was mildly comforted. "Thanks, Ivan. I just miss her, you know? She's my sister."

Just then, Kenzi's stomach let out a tremendous growl. She was pretty much always hungry, but she realized then that she hadn't eaten since breakfast with Bruce. Looking out the window, Kenzi could tell that there was only about an hour of daylight left, and she needed to get some food together.

Picking up Ivan, Kenzi stood, and looked more closely at the interior of the yurt. There was the desk, obviously, but there was also a low table surrounded by cushions, and a small hearth beside it. There was a set-up that looked vaguely like a kitchen – at least, it had the cabinets part down – and then an area that Kenzi figured must be for sleeping, considering the number of blankets rolled up there.

Kenzi let Ivan down and walked over to the kitchen. She found many baskets and drawers full of produce, and even a small cooler with some kind of meat. Though she'd once tried to make soup with Bo to a terrible end, she knew she could make some sort of stew that wouldn't totally kill her. The only thing missing was broth, but Kenzi figured she'd have to get away with using water. She rummaged around for a bit and found a big canteen, and took that with her to go to the river.

The river was almost literally right behind the yurt. It was just a few hundred yards away, and Kenzi quickly filled her canteen with river water. She noticed, on her way back up, that there was a clothesline set up by the bank. She kept that in mind if she had laundry to do later.

As Kenzi chopped up vegetables, peeled potatoes, and cut the meat, she fed Ivan scraps when he wove himself between her legs. After she set the stew to bubble on the hearth, Kenzi took to exploring the dwelling.

Between the kitchen and bedroom areas, there was an old-looking chest of drawers with a hutch on top. The hutch, at first glance, was filled with knickknacks, but upon closer inspection, Kenzi realized that they were Fae artifacts. There were some things that looked familiar to her, things like the ones Trick had, but there were others that Kenzi had never seen before. Ignoring the Trick-like voice in her head that warned her not to touch, Kenzi picked up a small tin jar with an odd symbol etched into it.

No, not a symbol. It was a drawing, Kenzi saw, turning the pot in her hand. It was an etching of a dove. Kenzi unscrewed the lid and took a whiff.

"Oh, nasty!" she cried, holding her face away from the smell. "I did _not_ need to smell that." Moving to put it back on the shelf, Kenzi paused. There was a little circle in the dust where the pot had been, and there was a tag beneath it.

"Balm of Peace," she read. "Well, that sounds useful enough." She slid it into her pocket and kept looking.

Kenzi's eyes fell upon an old-looking perfume bottle, the kind with the spritzer pump and tassel. Her lips curled into a sly smile as she read the tag for it.

"That will _definitely_ come in handy," she said with a smirk.

Nothing else in the hutch grabbed her attention, so Kenzi moved on to the drawers. Her eyes lit up when she opened the one on top.

"Aha! Weapons!" Kenzi's first pick was a small grappling hook. "Good for climbing mountains, I hope," she muttered to herself as she set it on the floor. Next, she found a lock-picking set that rivaled the one she'd put together in her prime thieving days. And lastly, in the very bottom drawer, she found a katana in a beautifully tooled leather sheath.

"You're no Geraldine, but you'll do," Kenzi said with a wistful sigh. "I think I'll call you…Brunhilda."

With that, she gathered her supplies and dumped them on the floor beside her bedroll, along with a small satchel she'd found tucked beside the dresser. She went back into the kitchen, grabbed a crusty loaf of bread she'd found earlier, and hacked off a hunk with a small hunting knife. She took that, the leftover water in the canteen, and an empty bowl to the hearth, and sat on a cushion as she ladled herself some dinner.

Ivan, having filled up on Kenzi's treats, was fast asleep on the cushion beside Kenzi. She stroked him intermittently as she ate, thinking of her upcoming adventures. Bo made Kenzi strong – she made her brave. To be brave without her would be to rise above things Kenzi had long pretended didn't exist. Feeling utterly sorry for herself, Kenzi left the stew and her bowl and made herself a bed. She would need her rest.


	4. Horn-a-Copia

hola, chiquitos y chiquitas! happy lg day :) i'm back at school, but i'm already homesick - only two weeks to go!

hope you enjoy this chapter. i am really trying to get more dialogue in here, but kenzi's pretty lonely! any suggestions? does all the description bother you?

love and light, bbs. catch ya later!

* * *

_Kenzi felt weak. She hadn't eaten in days, and hadn't seen sunlight, and hadn't seen Bo. Where was Bo? Why hadn't Bo come to rescue her?_

"_Bo?" Kenzi gasped out, seeing a figure at the entrance of the cave._

"_I told you, she's not coming," the voice snarled. Oh, it was Inari. The Kitsune who'd stolen her face and her freedom. "She didn't get your message," Inari said with a smirk._

"_W-what?" How was that possible? Kenzi had specifically told Inari to bring Bo coconut ice cream, the kind of ice cream Bo hated, in the hopes that Bo would understand that she was still alive – that she was waiting for her. How did Bo not understand?_

"_Oh, little human," Inari chided condescendingly. "You think you're so clever, and you think these people care about you – but they don't!" She growled, then, showing her pointy little teeth. Kenzi marveled at how terrifying it was to see her own face morph like that._

"_Of course they do," Kenzi argued, her voice imbued with bravado she did not feel. "Bo is my sister. Dyson and Hale are my friends. They're my family."_

"_That's where you're wrong, Kenzi," Inari chuckled. "They're _my_ family now."_

Kenzi jerked awake, hair stuck to her face with sweat. She had been having nightmares for weeks, ever since Bo and Dyson and Tamsin had rescued her from Inari's cave. The first night, at Trick's, she didn't have them. Lauren had been stroking her hair – and how weird was that, but for some reason Kenzi had enjoyed the woman's touch that night. Bo was there, too, watching over her like a little guardian succubus. But once they went home, and things started going back to "normal" – whatever that was for them – Kenzi started having dreams.

They'd started off as memories, just little snippets of things Inari had said or done. But then they morphed into could-have-beens, and as Bo grew more distant with her Dawning and Lauren and Tamsin and everything, Kenzi felt herself spiraling deeper into this hole.

She remembered a story, from when she was younger, about a little old woman called the _Drioma_. They said she used to wait underneath the windows of lonely children, and when they were going to sleep, she would creep in through the cracks and tuck them into bed and kiss them goodnight. Kenzi had looked her up one day when she'd been hanging out at the Dal with nothing to do, and it had said all that, but with a caveat – she also gave grown-ups nightmares.

Kenzi'd felt like crying. She didn't put all her stock in Fae matters, but she also felt kind of abandoned by this woman she used to believe was a kindly spirit watching out for her. After her father had died, no one ever tucked Kenzi in. She'd always had faith that, even if she never saw her, the _Drioma_ pulled the covers up to her chin and smoothed the hair off her forehead.

"I need you here, Bo," Kenzi whispered into the dark. "Without you with me, it's like…I can't even breathe."

Kenzi had brushed off Bo's attempts to talk to her about what happened in the cave. At first, it was because Kenzi had wanted to put that all behind her. Then it was because she didn't want to ask Bo why she hadn't realized that Inari wasn't Kenzi sooner. Finally, it was because of the nightmares, and by that point, Bo had stopped really asking. And Kenzi had to be strong for Bo, because Bo needed her best friend. And then everything got messed up and Kenzi got taken by the Morrigan and Bo went off with Tamsin and now Kenzi was here, and Bo was…well, Kenzi didn't know where Bo was. And there wasn't exactly five-bar cell reception on Buyan.

Kenzi stretched, her body stiff from a night on the floor. The sun was close to rising, and Kenzi figured she'd best get a move on if she was going to climb a mountain.

Kenzi was not a morning person, and coffee was basically necessary for her survival. But unfortunately, the rather primitive yurt didn't have a percolator – or the coffee to put in it. So Kenzi filled a small copper kettle with water and leaves and left it to steep by the fire while she found something to wear.

She'd realized after dinner that she was stuck wearing the clothes she'd come to meet Massimo in. She'd had a few wardrobe changes in the Morrigan's car, but she'd left all her stuff with Bruce. Thankfully, she'd discovered that the bottom two drawers in the chest from last night were filled with clothes. They were not clothes that Kenzi would ever select herself, but beggars couldn't be fae-shionistas…or something like that.

She peeled off her tank top and rank skinny jeans, leaving herself shivering slightly in her bra and underwear. From the top drawer, Kenzi took a pair of black leather leggings and a studded tunic. After a second pass-through, she also took a black velvet jerkin with silver embroidery. Weirdly, every item fit her perfectly.

The bottom drawer was full of shoes, but they were mostly dainty little slippers that seemed more appropriate for dancing or playing princesses than climbing mountains. Instead, Kenzi grabbed the one pair of boots. They were flat, but made of supple black leather, and when Kenzi put them on, they almost molded to her feet.

"Wow," she exclaimed softly. "That's intense."

She walked across the room, testing out the new shoes. They were like nothing Kenzi had ever worn before – she felt lighter than air, and yet, she felt like she could run a marathon or deadlift Bruce without breaking a sweat.

"Dude, I'm such a badass," she said aloud.

She took a clean bowl from a cabinet in the kitchen, and then reclaimed her cushion by the hearth. The stew was still warm, having hung out beside the embers all night, and Kenzi ladled herself some breakfast while her tea cooled enough to touch.

To Kenzi's surprise, both the stew and the tea invigorated her immensely. Maybe it was something about having more than Toastie BunBuns and vodka for breakfast, but Kenzi felt better this morning than she had in a long while. Of course, all good things must end, and Kenzi soon remembered the nerve-wracking adventure in which she was about to partake.

She stood once more, leaving her dirty dishes on the low hearth table, and walked over to the stool she'd laid out her supplies on. She strapped Brunhilda, her new sword, to her back, and stuffed a coil of rope and the grappling hook into her satchel. She then grabbed the canteen from the floor by her bed and slung that strap across her body, and took the perfume bottle she'd found the night before off the shelf.

"Here goes nothing," Kenzi muttered, and began to manically spritz herself with the liquid in the bottle. It had been labeled as "Holy Water," and Kenzi mentally crossed all her fingers that the ruse would help her get up the mountain.

"Only one way to find out, though. I'll be back soon, Ivan," she called to the still-sleeping cat. She took the map off the desk and left the yurt.

"Okay, so if the river is behind me, that means I need to head," Kenzi paused to read the wind rose, "due east. That's towards the sun, right? Right, okay."

She detoured for a minute to refill the canteen, and then she walked diagonally into the wooded glen where the sun was rising from behind the evergreens.

Kenzi pushed her way through needled boughs, grumbling quietly at the sap and dirt getting on her hands. It was about a mile's hike to the foothills of Holy Mountain.

"Holy…Mountain," Kenzi whistled. Her head tilted back as she looked up at the peak. The mountain seemed to her to be just craggy gray rock with a few withered shrubs, but she shrugged and walked towards it. Then she paused. She took the grappling hook from her bag and attached it to the rope, swinging it experimentally over her head like a lasso. Then she cast the line, and had to jerk out of the way so she didn't get nailed in the face.

"Christ on a cracker," she panted, "that did not go as planned!"

There was some sort of forcefield protecting the mountain, Kenzi guessed, and she worried that her plan really might not work after all. She stepped up onto a rock, then stepped again, and held her breath. She felt her foot pass through something slippery and liquid, like she ran her fingers under a low-pressure faucet. She made to step again, but with a bang, she was flat on her back with Brunhilda poking into her ribs.

"Dammit," she cursed. "Okay, Plan C. Umm…"

Kenzi got on her knees, quickly making the sign of the cross over her chest. She clasped her hands together, and closed her eyes tightly.

"Um, forgive me, Father, for I have sinned. Wait, no, that's confession. Um, shit. Oh, god, sorry for saying shit. Twice. And for using your name in vain." She opened her eyes and frowned. "This is not going very well. Okay, shake it off, Kenzi, shake it off." She wiggled her shoulders and tried to clear her mind. She inhaled, and let out a long puff of air.

"Okay. Well, listen, whoever's up there, because this is the Kenz, coming to you live. Look, I need some help. There's this mountain, okay, and I gotta get up there to complete this task for Massimo, the druid, so he can make me Fae. Now, I know that sounds kind of self-serving, and maybe it is, because I'm kinda on Terror Watch right now in Faeville and it's scary as h-e-double-hockey-sticks and I got kind of exiled by this guy who I thought was one of my friends but maybe wants to be more than that and – anyway. But my best friend, Bo, she's…in trouble, I don't know, but she's like my sister and I need to help her, okay? So if you could just work your voodoo or whatever so I can get the Indrik's Horn and give it to Massimo, that would be freaking awesome and I wouldn't even laugh at people who believed in you anymore. At least, not for a while. So, um, thanks for listening and helping, maybe, if you can."

Kenzi stood and brushed off her knees. She made a jerky little curtsy, and walked back over to the base of the mountain. She stepped slowly up the little rock-stairs, and paused where she had before. Taking a deep breath, she pressed her palm out and felt for the shield. It was there, but just as her foot had before, her hand passed through it like a really thick bubble. And then her arm, and then her whole body as she took another step forward.

"Oh my god," she breathed. Though Holy Mountain had looked desolate and barren while Kenzi was outside the forcefield, now that she was on the inside, Kenzi felt…enlightened. There was lush flora everywhere, and the air was sweetly fragrant with fresh fruit and greenery. Instead of the rock-climbing expedition that Kenzi had anticipated, there was a walking path that seemed to wind around the side of the mountain.

"She'll be comin' round the mountain when she comes," Kenzi sang to herself, hitching up her pack and beginning to walk the trail. About halfway, she stopped to eat some berries, and washed them down with a little water. She pulled a handkerchief from her satchel and wrapped a bundle of berries to take home. Then she continued her walk.

"Yeehaw," she gasped. In the not-too-distant distance, Kenzi saw the looming figure of an animal. "Legs of a deer, body of a bull, head of a horse, horn of a rhino – uh oh," Kenzi whispered. She unsheathed Brunhilda and walked unsteadily towards the creature. "Don't be scared, don't be scared – horses can smell fear, right? Oh god, oh dear, dear Darla," Kenzi whimpered, stopping in her tracks. "_Ya idu mochtsya_," she muttered.

She crept forward, and then stopped dead as she stepped on a branch. The loud crack alerted the Indrik to her presence, and with a decidedly furious puff of air from his nose, he turned to her and started to advance.

"Whoa, there; nice King Beastie," Kenzi said, brandishing her sword. She slashed through the air a few times, hoping to startle him, but all her posturing seemed to do was frustrate the animal even further.

He galloped towards Kenzi at an even faster clip, and Kenzi soon found herself backed up against a large flowering tree.

"I was never any good at climbing," she mumbled nervously, but tried to scramble up to a branch anyhow. Unfortunately, she couldn't gain traction, and just ended up with scraped palms. She grabbed a low-hanging limb and pulled her legs up, trying to kick the Indrik in the snout, but the frond snapped off even under her negligible weight. Feeling out of options, Kenzi waved the branch in front of his face.

He sneezed.

At least, Kenzi thought he did. It was kind of hard to tell, him being an animal and all, but he let out a sort-of whinny with an added chuff that sounded sneeze-like. She waved the branch again, wiggling it before his nose like one would tease a person with a feather. The Indrik sneezed again. Gaining confidence, Kenzi gripped Brunhilda tightly in her left hand while waving the frond in her right, and when the Indrik sneezed again, Kenzi swung her blade around to his horn.

"Uh oh," she whispered as the Indrik reared back and charged at her.

She'd made a sizeable cut on the side of his horn, but the object was so thick and tough that it hadn't come off in one blow. Now, Kenzi feared that she was going to be gored. Was this how it had ended for all the Fae that had tried and failed before her? Would all her innie parts become outies?

Kenzi turned her head to look at the Indrik, and tripped over a boulder. She faceplanted, but flipped herself over and crab-walked backwards as fast as she could. The Indrik leapt over the rock in his path and came barreling towards her, his horn lowered. Kenzi's shoulders hit another tree, and she flattened herself to the ground. Closing her eyes tight, she waited for the pain.

But it never came. Instead, she heard angry neighing from the beast above her, and she chanced a look upwards. The Indrik had gotten his horn stuck in the bark of the tree. Kenzi crawled out from underneath him and began hacking away at the horn like she was Paul Bunyan.

The Indrik howled, but he was still stuck. Except Kenzi's plan had one major flaw. Once he was hornless, he would also be free.

"You can't touch me now, bitch!" Kenzi cried as the beast lunged for her. She ran, but fell once more. "Ow!"

He'd bitten her arm, and he raised a hoof to stomp her, but she rolled out of the way. Cradling her injured arm against her side, Kenzi lifted Brunhilda and delivered the life-ending slice to the Indrik's neck.

"Take that, Dark Horse," she panted. "Who's the King of the Beasts now?"

Kenzi hobbled back to the tree where the Indrik's horn was still embedded in the trunk. Using her sword (and sheer force of will), she pried it out, and stowed her prize in her satchel. When she wiped her brow, she noticed blood on her hands.

Kenzi's sight grew blurrier as she stumbled down the mountain. She zigzagged her way back to the yurt, but passed that to collapse on the riverbank. She slowly shrugged off her pack, and then rolled herself into the cool water.

She hissed slightly as the water stung her wounds, but then she felt the pain leech away. Her eyes drifted lazily closed, and the last things she saw were swirls of red in the deep blue river.


	5. Chain Gang

yo, biatches! happy fae day :) how incredible was last week's ep? everything a bo/kenzi lover could ask for!

shoutout to two of my favorites, **Julielein** and **MistressDarkness**. y'all are the coolest chicks in town.

* * *

Kenzi awoke to a sandpapery wetness on the back of her hand. "Hey, what…?" she asked weakly. Ivan stopped licking her and put a paw against her chest, as if to silence her. "How did I get here?" she spoke again. She sat up, and a cloth fell into her blanketed lap. She was back in the yurt, by the fire, and she was wrapped in warm furs from her bedroll.

The cloth was damp, and Kenzi figured that it had been wrapped around her forehead. She looked at Ivan suspiciously. "Is there someone else here?" she asked him. He shook his head.

Kenzi had deduced that Ivan could understand her, but she was not prepared for what happened next. Ivan mewed once, and then reared up on his hind legs. He began walking around as if he were a bipedal creature by nature. Kenzi just gaped at him.

"Did _you_ bring me back here?"

Ivan nodded, and gave a little bow. Kenzi laughed once in disbelief. Ivan dropped back onto all fours and made his way into Kenzi's lap. She pulled her fingers through his orange fur, and he purred contentedly.

Kenzi suddenly realized what she was doing, and took quick stock of her body. Her injuries were completely gone. Her arm had healed, her head was scratch-free, and even her palms bore no signs that they'd been damaged during the day.

"Did you heal me too, Ivan?" Kenzi asked the cat.

He shook his head, and gestured to the canteen sitting on the table.

"The water did it?"

Ivan nodded, and stood up. He took the Buyan book from the desk, gripping it with his dewclaws, and brought it back over to Kenzi. There was a ribbon marking a page, and Kenzi pulled it open.

_The Alatyr Stone rests in the middle of Buyan. It is the center point of the island, as well as the intersection of Buyan's four rivers. The omphalos serves not only to divide the waters, but also imbues them with the mystical healing properties of the Stone itself. It is guarded by the Gagana, a fearsome bird with iron beak and copper claws, and the Garafena, a winged snake. Beside the Alatyr Stone grows the ancient Oak tree (see Tree of the World)._

"Wait a minute," she said once she'd finished reading. "That tree sounds familiar." Kenzi turned to the noted page and read from there.

_The Tree of the World grows in the center of Buyan. Known also as the Cosmic Tree or the Ancient Oak, the World Tree is the epicenter of the island's magic. It is often invoked in incantations, the Tree symbolizing the innate power of the Earth and all living things. It is said that the Tree bears protective properties, and the roots of the Tree guard the trunk of Koschei (see Koschei the Deathless)._

"Koschei the Deathless?" Kenzi asked Ivan. The cat's fur stood on end, and he narrowed his eyes. "Not a nice dude, I guess."

Kenzi flipped to the beginning of the book and read the passage on the mysterious Koschei.

_Koschei, known as The Deathless, is a famed sorcerer, like his mother (see Baba Yaga) who is rumored to have hidden his soul so that he is unable to be killed. An iron trunk is buried at the roots of the World Tree (see Tree of the World) and guarded by the Gamayun, a fortune-telling vulture with a human head. If one succeeds in getting past the Gamayun and digging up the trunk, Koschei will be summoned so that he may fight for his life._

"Dude's like an even more badass Voldemort," Kenzi muttered in shock. "And he's the son of Baba Yaga? This is _so_ not cool."

Ivan purred and nuzzled Kenzi's arm. She sighed.

"Tomorrow, buddy, I'm going to visit the Zoryi. Then we'll see about Koschei."

Kenzi and Ivan ate a quick meal of bread, cheese, and fruit. She also removed the Indrik's Horn from her bag, grated a bit of it into the runeglass, and stored it on the highest shelf of the hutch. Then Kenzi lay back down before the fire, her blankets and cat curled tightly around her, and fell asleep.

* * *

In the morning, Kenzi rose and dressed in a new tunic. The old one had been bitten clean through, and smelled like sweat and animal. She put on her jerkin and boots, and strapped Brunhilda and her satchel to her back. She also hung a moleskin pouch around her neck, which held the Balm of Peace and the Twig of Zamora. Though Kenzi had healed well from the river water, she didn't want to risk getting too badly injured – and if Hale had risked his own life to save hers, it seemed foolish to refuse the help that the Twig would provide.

Kenzi opened the lower drawers of the chest. Upon further inspection of the weapons, she took out a small crossbow and propped it up against the cabinet. She didn't think she'd need it at the Sun Palace, but it could come in handy for her bird watching the next day.

Kenzi laid the map out on the desk and saw that the Sun Palace was just past the river. She gathered up her canteen and a few other tools and stowed them in her back.

"Later, Ivan," she called to her cat friend. She left the yurt and walked down to the riverbed.

Kenzi didn't know how she'd missed the castle before – the peaks of the towers shot up from behind the trees, their brightly-colored spires glinting in the early light. Kenzi made quick work of the distance, and soon found herself at the palace gates. She tried to open them, but the wrought bronze wouldn't budge. So Kenzi hoisted herself up the metal bars, tossed her pack over the wall, and then ducked and rolled her body over. She was a bit scuffed and bruised, but none worse for the wear.

"Phase one, complete," she mumbled, brushing her pants off. She re-shouldered her bag and set off for the main doors.

There was a big doorknocker, a happy sun face smiling down at her and holding a thick ring in its mouth. Kenzi banged the brass against the wooden door, alerting those inside to her presence. Soon enough, the door opened, and Kenzi was face to face with a woman who looked not much older than herself.

"Hey there," Kenzi said, shuffling her feet shyly. "Are you one of the Zoryi?"

The woman tossed her dark curls, golden eyes glinting with mirth and intrigue. "I am. I am Zorya Utrennyaya, the Morning Star. Can I be of assistance to you, _devotchka_?"

"Um, yeah," Kenzi said. "I need to talk to you and your sisters – it's about your dog."

"Come inside, dear one," the Zorya said, ushering Kenzi to pass her. Kenzi found herself in a bright marble foyer, yellow tiles making sun patterns on the floor. "My sisters are asleep – I take watch in the morning, you know, and my sisters don't wake until midday or dusk. But I am happy to speak with you. Tell me, what is your name?"

"I'm Kenzi," Kenzi answered. "I was sent here to get a link from the chain of Simargl."

The Zorya's countenance shifted from pleasant to horrified. "This is not possible!" she exclaimed. "Simargl must be bound at all times! To do otherwise would mean immediate devastation for the entire world!"

"I know that," Kenzi answered, "but I have a plan. What if I could calm Simargl down so that he wouldn't hurt anybody? Then I could release him for like a minute while I shorten the leash, and then I'd put him back. No harm, no foul."

"It…it seems reasonable enough," the Zorya said, "but it simply cannot be done!"

Kenzi bounced her leg nervously. "Look, lady, I'm like the best animal trainer on this island," she said, using her cover from when she'd been captured by the Baba. "If I can't do it, it can't be done – but I really think I can."

Kenzi had no idea what she was going to do, but she knew she'd figure something out. She just needed the opportunity.

Zorya Utrennyaya looked at her nervously, and glanced up at the ceiling. "My sisters would not approve," she said quietly. "Vechernyaya will awake in two hours' time. But I will give you until then, Kenzi. I will take you to the Hound's cage."

Kenzi kept her face neutral, but inside she was both cheering and freaking out. She had gotten a chance, which was amazing, but now she had to actually figure out what to do.

Kenzi quietly followed the Zorya through the hall and down to the dungeon. It was a spooky, dank place, and Kenzi couldn't help but shudder.

"When we are not down here, the Hound sleeps," Zorya whispered. "But he can smell you, and he will wake when we get close. Try not to call out."

Kenzi narrowed her eyes, but said nothing. She trailed behind the demi-goddess as they passed rows upon rows of empty cages. Finally, they turned a corner, and Kenzi nearly had a heart attack as they heard the most ferocious set of growls.

"Remain calm, human," the Zorya comforted, though her voice shook with fear. "He cannot hurt us as long as he is chained to the bear."

Kenzi's eyes had adjusted to the dim light of the basement, and so she was momentarily blinded by the sharp light of the bear's fur. The animal glowed brightly, his coat like woven moonbeams.

She shielded her eyes and said, "This is just stellar, man." She let out a short chuckle at her own joke, but Zorya Utrennyaya ignored her.

"Ursa will not harm you, Kenzi," the Zorya explained. "He is only here to guard Simargl."

_But I'm going to be putting a kink in the works,_ Kenzi thought. "Can you let me into the cage?" she asked the Zorya.

"Wait until Ursa has subdued the Hound," Zorya instructed. The bear bit down into the Hound's shoulder, and Simargl howled in anguish and rage. Then he calmed, slumping down on his front paws, and Ursa licked his shimmering teeth clean of the blood.

"Dude, it's like fuckin' Animal Planet right now," Kenzi exclaimed. "Cray to the zay."

"Be careful, Kenzi," the Zorya warned, taking a large skeleton key from the pocket of her gown. "I will come down to collect you in two hours' time."

"Roger dodger," Kenzi saluted. "And thanks."

"Don't thank me yet, human." The Zorya unlocked the cell door and allowed Kenzi passage. Then she slammed the gate shut behind her and walked back down the hall.

"Oh, this is a total shit sandwich," Kenzi moaned, suddenly terrified out of her mind. She pressed her back against the door and tried to even her breathing. "I really am more of a cat person."

"Okay, Kenz, breathe," she coached herself. "This is fine, you've been in worse scrapes than this! All you've gotta do is unchain Fluffy here, get him into some sort of doggy-daydream, and pry off one of his links. No sweat." Kenzi gulped. "I hope my rabies vaccs are up to date."

She took off her bag and pulled the lockpicking set from it. Then, warily, she walked towards the animals. She felt the bear's eyes on her, but she knew he wouldn't attack unless he thought she was a threat.

In her left hand, she clutched her tools, and with her right, she tentatively reached out to touch the chain. She was just trying to get a feel for it, but the minute her fingertips grazed the metal, Simargl went wild. He was barking, and howling, and biting at the air. Ursa lunged for him, and in so doing slammed against Kenzi. The protective shield that the Twig placed around her buckled at the assault, and Kenzi was tossed backwards, away from the fray.

"Holy hell," she cursed quietly, rubbing her head with both hands. The case containing her tools had popped open, and as soon as she mustered the strength, Kenzi walked on her knees across the dungeon to straighten them. As she leaned forward, the neck of her tunic gaped, and the pouch around her neck slipped out. Kenzi felt the weighty packet slap lightly against her clavicle, and she sat back on her heels. She glanced over at the Doomsday Hound, whose keeper had restrained him once more, and pulled out the tin pot from her pseudo-necklace. Kenzi bit her lip, wrinkled her nose, and unscrewed the lid.

"Ugh, so gnarly," she muttered, the stench of burnt leaves and too many herbs filling her nostrils. But she dipped her finger into the balm and began slathering it on her lips. Kenzi winced at first, but then a feeling of tranquility washed over her. She sighed, feeling a weight lift from her chest that she didn't even know had been there. She stood and walked over to Simargl.

"Pucker up, big boy," she said, crouching and pressing her face up against his. "I'll forgive your slobber this time."

She kissed his nose and then jumped back, Simargl straining against his chain as he lunged for Kenzi. Thinking quickly, Kenzi tossed the still-open container in his direction, and Simargl devoured it. At first, he thrashed and yowled, but after a moment, a glazed expression faded over his eyes, and he relaxed. The empty, half-gnawed tin lay on the floor, covered in doggy drool, but that was no longer Kenzi's concern. She shuffled over to the locked shackle on his leg and began to pick it.

Ursa growled, and Kenzi panicked. _Why didn't I bring something for the bear?_ she cursed herself. Thankfully, the lock was eons old, and it took Kenzi about twenty seconds to crack the band open. Ursa, suddenly free, began to run at Kenzi like a battering ram. He never touched her, but it took all of Kenzi's power not to get tossed and flattened against the dungeon wall. Summoning whatever Powers-That-Be to assist her, Kenzi grabbed the pliers from her toolkit and began removing the first link from the chain. The metal was strong – it was, after all, forged to contain the apocalypse incarnate – but Kenzi had lots of motivation and zero patience. With shuddering limbs and sweat beading on her forehead, Kenzi pried loose the metal loop and reattached the chain to the shackle and the shackle to the Hound.

Suddenly, the assault ceased, and Kenzi dropped to the ground completely spent. She army-crawled over to where she'd laid down her bag and canteen, and popped open the water vessel to drink from it thirstily. Leaning with her back against the gate, Kenzi took a moment to catch her breath. She secured the link in the runeglass, joining the horn shavings, and corked and stowed the bottle.

"You let a _human_ down here? What were you thinking, Utrennyaya?"

Kenzi stood at the sound of an angry voice booming down the hall.

"She's strong, Vechernyaya, I could feel it. She's the best animal trainer on the island!"

"Humans are human, Utrennyaya. They may be strong in human terms, but Fae are superior. You know that! This was just thoughtless and foolish."

Kenzi's ears had begun to redden at the intonation of the word human, but her whole face flushed when Vechernyaya began to degrade her kind. She grabbed her stuff and waited to be let out of the cage. Vechernyaya looked like a slightly older version of Utrennyaya, with the same dark ringlets and bright eyes. But there was a viciousness in Vechernyaya that Kenzi hadn't detected in her sister. Vechernyaya scowled at Kenzi, and Kenzi returned the look with fervor.

"Did you complete your mission, Kenzi?" Utrennyaya asked Kenzi, obviously nervous.

Kenzi nodded. "Yep! I got what I came for. You were a great help, Zorya," Kenzi thanked, dipping her head respectfully.

"If you are finished here, human, then you may go," Vechernyaya cut in. Kenzi hadn't minded when Utrennyaya called her human, because she hadn't said it with malice. With Vechernyaya, there was an undertone of insult to the title, and Kenzi didn't like that at all.

"I am finished, _Fae_, and I will go as soon as you let me out of this cell," Kenzi bit out.

Vechernyaya gave her a dark look as Utrennyaya hastily unlocked the gate and let Kenzi through.

Kenzi thanked Utrennyaya again, ignoring her sister entirely, and began to walk towards the stairs. But then she stopped, spinning around on her heel, and stalked back towards the elder Star guardian.

"You know, Fae and humans are so much alike," Kenzi said. "There are always people who think they're better than everyone else, and it's usually because they know they aren't. I don't need to posture to prove my worth," Kenzi spat, years of bitterness at being made to feel less-than bubbling up inside of her. "I just _am_ worthy."

She turned around, the soles of her buskins hitting the tiled floors the only sounds in the hall. But then, Kenzi was forced slightly forward, hands resting on her knees as she fought to remain upright. She wasn't hurt, just jostled a little. She looked back, and Vechernyaya was glaring at her hand as if it had betrayed her, somehow.

Kenzi couldn't help but chuckle. "This is a beat, uh, you can't touch," she quipped, doing a little jig before she turned the corner and let herself out of the Palace.


	6. O Fortuna

good lord. my parents picked me up from school today, and i am now off for a whole month :)

this chapter was kicking my ass until the very end, and i have to thank **Julielein** and **Lavenderangel** for putting up with my obsessive stressing and reading through all of my nonsense. in reward for your patience, this chapter is nearly 5k words long! i sincerely hope you like - this is one of my favorites. but i know some things are confusing, so if you have any questions, please pm me or leave me a review! all will become clear, i promise. xox

* * *

"I hope that Garafena venom doesn't stain," Kenzi grumbled, wiping her pants with a damp handkerchief. "But I mean, it's not like I'll ever wear these clothes again, so whatevs."

Kenzi tossed the hankie aside and stalked through the trees, drawing Brunhilda's blade across her shoulder like the bow of a violin. Her fingers clenched and unclenched around the hilt of the katana (Kenzi called it the X-Tina maneuver – very hip, very chic) in agitation. It was her fourth day of being on the island, and with each passing hour Kenzi grew more and more concerned about her friends. She had tried to focus on the task at hand, but little things kept reminding her of Bo, or Hale, or Dyson, or Trick, or…it didn't matter, really, and it was next to impossible to separate her mission from her family anyway. After all, she was doing this for them.

Kenzi stopped suddenly, her ears pricking up at a rustling along the way. "Hello?" she called tentatively. Then she shook her head. "Dumb move, Kenzi." She held out Brunhilda and began to push her way forward, searching for the source of the noise.

"Hello," a voice responded. Kenzi frowned. She _knew_ that voice. "Hello?"

Kenzi's eyes narrowed, and her pace quickened. "Who the hell are you, and why do you have my—"

Kenzi stopped dead, mouth agape at what she saw.

"Hello, Kenzi. I have been expecting you."

A huge, feathered creature sat atop an iron, jewel-encrusted trunk. Kenzi had recognized her voice issuing from beyond the trees, but the bird-like Fae that she was now faced with shared more than just a mouth with Kenzi.

"You…you have my _face_," Kenzi said, staring at the bird that had just addressed her. "And my hair – _qu'est que_ the actual hell?"

"I am the Gamayun," she continued, as if Kenzi hadn't said anything. "I guard the Soul of Koschei."

Kenzi rolled her eyes, gripping Brunhilda even tighter. "Well, get ready to un-guard it, because I need that egg."

The Gamayun unfurled her wings, the large black feathers making silky whooshing sounds as they brushed against each other. She may have copied Kenzi's head, but her body was all vulture. Her gnarled, yellow-brown talons gripped the edge of the trunk lid, and she grimaced at Kenzi.

"Alright, human," she said. She flapped her wings once, experimentally, and then flew herself up to a low branch on the World Tree. "I think I'll enjoy watching your struggle."

Kenzi quashed the self-righteous fury threatening to spill over inside her. She knew that she didn't have the energy to battle the Gamayun _and_ whatever was in this trunk, especially not after her pit stop with the Gagana and Garafena earlier. Kenzi ran her hand across the trunk face, feeling for weaknesses. There was no visible lock, but Kenzi knew that didn't mean anything. There could be hinges to take off, or a hidden panel, or even some sort of release button. Then her fingers knocked against a raised lump, and Kenzi smirked. She quickly retrieved her toolkit and set to work picking the masked padlock. Ears were better than eyes when it came to picking, anyway, and Kenzi bent her head to listen for the tumblers. She hummed her satisfaction when she heard them click, and tugged down sharply on the body until she felt the shackle pop out.

Kenzi heard the Gamayun cluck in disbelief as she timidly levered open the trunk lid. The hinges squawked, rusty and stiff, and there was a commotion within the trunk. When Kenzi got the top off, a brown, furry bundle leapt at her face and moved past her with frightening speed.

"Whoever coined the phrase 'quick like a bunny' was _not_ shitting around!" Kenzi gasped. Squatting by her satchel, she unhooked her crossbow from the outside and loaded it with a bolt. Then she fired at the hare, praying for luck.

Kenzi was as shocked as anyone when the hare went down in one pass, but her eyes widened and her heart sped up as the rabbit started to shift. As if morphing, the hare began to convulse, and Kenzi winced as she heard its jaw crack. From its newly gaping mouth, greenish-gray wings emerged, and a mallard climbed from the hare's innards.

Kenzi was so caught off-guard that she barely registered the need to shoot until the duck was in flight, quacking angrily as it flapped towards her face. She raised her weapon and pulled the trigger, miraculously nailing the fowl in one go. But that was not the end of it. Just as the hare before it, the duck began to palpitate, and from its downy breast came a tiny gray cygnet, small enough to fit in Kenzi's cupped hands. Kenzi loved all animals, but she couldn't bring herself to harm this baby. Thankfully, the little swan didn't seem to be running away. It made itself a nice nest in the grass, hunkered down, and began to grow. In place of the ruffled gray fluff appeared silky white feathers, and the beak elongated and intensified its bright orange hue. Across the swan's eyes came the familiar black mask, and it stretched out its wings once before shuffling them back against its sides.

Kenzi was drawn to the majestic creature, but as she was stepping forward, the swan trilled once and then flew away. In the grass was a gleaming, almost silver egg, and Kenzi picked it up. It was slightly warm, and so large that Kenzi had to hold it in both hands. As she turned it gently, she heard a crack behind her. Then she whirled around.

"Who disturbs my resting place?"

A hulking man stood before Kenzi. Even if she hadn't been small of stature, he would've towered over her. He was bulky, and tall, and wore a menacing expression on his face. When he looked at what Kenzi held in her hands, she swore she saw smoke coming from his ears.

"You killed my hare? And my mallard?" he asked her in rage-filled disbelief. "Who _are_ you?"

"Lady on a mission," Kenzi shrugged. "Who are you?"

The man puffed out his chest and smirked at her. "I am Koschei the Deathless."

"Well…" Kenzi waffled as he stepped to her, feeling even more dwarfed by his mass. He was even bigger than Bruce, and at least Bruce had been sweet to Kenzi. "Well, get ready to be Death-_more_!"

_That was awful_, Kenzi thought awkwardly, her nose wrinkling. But Koschei didn't seem to care one way or another about her pitiful excuse for a comeback. All he wanted was her egg.

"Give me the egg, _rebjonok_," Koschei growled.

Kenzi tried to stop the corners of her mouth from quirking upwards, but failed as she let out a loud guffaw. "Are you kidding?" she asked in amusement. "That's all you got?" She'd been called so much worse than brat before – tramp, slut, whore – that the term didn't faze her in the slightest.

"I have no time for foolishness, girl," Koschei barked. "Give me the egg, and I won't have to thrash your puny body from bottom to top."

"No deal, Howie," Kenzi said flippantly. "The swan gave this to me, so I'm guessing I need it."

Koschei's angry mask faltered slightly. "She _gave_ it to you?"

"Well, she let me have it," Kenzi shrugged. "The other animals fought me, the swan just flew away."

"That was no ordinary swan," Koschei mused, as if not meaning for Kenzi to overhear. "That was a Valkyrie. Valkyries don't just willingly relinquish their prizes."

"Whoa, hold up," Kenzi interrupted. "I know Valkyries. Like, I've hung out with one and my bestie kinda made out with her once – whatever, never mind. The point is, she's all lady. Is there another kind of Valkyrie?"

"Silly girl," Koschei scoffed. "Valkyries are Valkyries, there is no other. When they wear their skins, they are swans."

"Like…Selkies, or something?" Kenzi asked.

"No! Selkies are seal Fae. Valkyries are swan Fae. Did no one teach you about our kind, weakling? What clan are you?"

Kenzi flushed. If she admitted that she was human, all hell could break loose. But if she didn't say anything at all, Koschei would be suspicious. So she chose option C. "Look, dude, I need your soul. I don't wanna hurt you or anything, but it's a necessary evil. Finders keepers, right?" she joked, though her insides churned as she waited for Koschei's backlash.

But all Koschei did was chuckle darkly. "You are _debil_," he mocked her. "Do you have any idea what you are doing?"

"Hey! I'm no moron any more than you're a supermodel, big guy," Kenzi snarked. She tucked the egg carefully under her left arm and brandished Brunhilda with her right. "Come and get it, sugartits," she goaded.

Koschei growled, lunging for Kenzi. She rolled out of his way, careful to keep the egg from being crushed. They went on like that for a time, with Koschei attacking and Kenzi on the defensive. The forest was silent, save their panting and grunting, until the Gamayun began to chant.

"For the foe to finally bow, crack the egg upon his brow," she intoned.

"Shut up!" Koschei hollered. Kenzi frowned. What did it mean? The egg part she obviously understood, and she quickly deduced that the brow meant his forehead. But…

Koschei tackled Kenzi to the ground as she lost her focus. She bounced away from any life-threatening boulders and other sharp objects, but she was still bruised from the fall. Koschei was about three times her width and twice her height, and he pinned her against the forest floor as easily as paper beats rock.

Then Kenzi got it. His soul would be released if she cracked the egg against his skull. She tried to maneuver her arm, holding the egg like a small football, out from under his girth, but each time she shifted he shifted right with her. Desperately, she tried to come up with a new strategy.

He would only let up if he thought she wasn't a threat to him. She would only stop being threatening if she stopped having control over his life or death. He wanted the egg back. But Kenzi would never let go willingly, so they were at a standstill.

Her eyes shut tightly. The Twig of Zamora prevented others from mortally damaging her, but maybe…

Kenzi reared back and slammed her head to the ground. She winced involuntarily as the pressure built in the back of her skull and she began to feel dizzy. She allowed her eyes to close, though she hated not being able to monitor her assailant. And then she felt him rise.

The minute he tried to take the egg from her, Kenzi knew he thought her weak. _Time to prove him wrong, SuperKenz,_ she thought. As if her body was in top form, Kenzi sprang to her feet and stared Koschei down. His momentary shock allowed Kenzi to lob the egg at his head like a fast-pitch ball machine.

"Who's got egg on their face now, you turdburger?" Kenzi panted, clutching her head and neck. Slimy iridescent goo dripped down Koschei's face, and a pine needle fluttered to the ground at Kenzi's feet. There was not a sound other than the rushing of Kenzi's blood in her ears, and Koschei dropped to his knees, clawing at his chest. Kenzi thought her vision was going as he winked out of existence, but all the other colors in the forest grew more vivid. She fell to the ground, the needle clenched tightly in one fist as the other hand held her cranium. The Gamayun began to circle overhead, and Kenzi glared weakly at her.

"I'm not dead yet," she yelled.

Then she closed her eyes and fainted.

* * *

Kenzi rose, feeling well rested and comfortable. She looked around, then down at herself. She was in a glistening room, all white, and was clothed in some sort of gauzy nightgown. She quelled a grimace at the garment, because all things being equal, it was pretty comfortable. Her ears perked up as she heard a noise, and then someone came in through a doorway.

"Ah, you're awake. It's good to see you again, Kanza," the woman said, smiling kindly.

"Again? And…wait, no one's called me Kanza since—" Kenzi trailed off, embarrassed.

"Yes, I know your _babulya_ called you Kanza. Kenzi is not really Russian, no?"

Kenzi shook her head. "No, Moms wanted me to be more…Canadian, I guess. Whatever. Anyway," she said, shaking her head at the memories, "who are you? And how do you know who I am?"

The woman smoothed a spot on the bed and sat beside Kenzi. "My sisters and I know all," she said. "My name is Bela, and I am one of the _Narucnici_, a _Rozanica_. I am a Fate."

"I've heard of you," Kenzi said slowly. "You…you decide the destinies of all new babies, right?"

"Very good," Bela praised. "Some parents leave offerings to us in the first days of a child's life, that we might grant gifts more generously."

"Did my parents not leave you anything? Is that why I'm so unlucky?" It was a joke, but fell a little flat at the underlying hurt in Kenzi's voice.

Bela frowned. "They did not leave tribute, but you were already destined for greatness. My sister Nikita and I gave gifts – ones you make wonderful use of, Kanza. Your sharp mind, and your big heart…those are your greatest strengths. But Chyornaya…" Bela paused, and looked at Kenzi. "She decreed that you would struggle, yes."

"But, I mean…surely you've screwed over other kids, right? Why am I here? What's so different about me?" Kenzi asked. She wasn't trying to be rude, but there was a bite to her voice.

"Everything happens for a reason, Kanza," Bela replied testily. "Hardship is needed in some for others to flourish."

"That's bullshit!" Kenzi yelled, getting up off the bed. "Babies haven't done anything wrong – why do you get to decide what happens to them? Why can't they make their own way?"

"Kenzi, please," Bela said, rising too and taking Kenzi's hands in her own. "Try to understand. If you had not met me, and had not heard about the Fae, what would you think about your life?"

"That it was shit," Kenzi answered, moving away from the white-haired woman. "Seriously, I spent the first twenty-odd years of my life trying to understand what I had done wrong to deserve my dad dying and a hit-first-ask-later stepdad and a mom who could not have given two craps about me if she _tried_. I wondered why I kept getting into bad situations and relationships and had to steal to survive—"

"Ah – but you _did_ survive," Bela murmured.

"Well, yeah," Kenzi agreed. "But I was miserable."

"Until you met Bo."

Kenzi couldn't help her soft smile at the mention of Bo's name. But then she narrowed her eyes at the _Rozanica_. "That was lucky."

"That was Fate, _ninotchka_." Bela corrected.

"You mean…I was supposed to get roofied and get rescued by Bo? That was _planned_?"

"Well, the drugs were an unfortunate oversight. But they were meant for Bo, not you. She was just—"

"Smart enough to take a pass on the free hooch," Kenzi sighed. "Figures."

"But you meeting her, and becoming her friend…that was fated, Kanza. She needs you with her. You are what makes her special."

Kenzi scoffed. "Yeah, right. I think the whole blue-eyed, sex-u-suck thing is what makes her special," she deflected.

Bela's face grew stern, and she pointed a finger at Kenzi's chest. "Do not belittle yourself or your influence, young one. In over two millennia, I have only once heard my sister Chyornaya give anyone leave to choose their own Fate. That was you, Kenzi."

"What?" Kenzi asked, bewildered.

"You have been given the opportunity to change your destiny. You can become one of us."

"Fae, you mean," Kenzi clarified.

Bela nodded. "That is unheard of for your kind. There has always been a very clear division – any human blood in a being, any at all, precludes Fae power from surfacing. In you, it would not even be having one Fae parent that would enhance your strength. It would be the complete infusion of Fae into your system, giving you the ability to stop being human entirely."

Kenzi felt a tingle of fear spread through her. "Wait. I'd still be me, though, right?"

"I would assume so," Bela answered without concern. "But one never knows. After all, you would be the first."

Kenzi fell silent. Much as she wanted to be Fae, she wasn't sure that it was worth giving up the self she'd worked so hard to create. After years of hardship and trials, to risk losing the one constant she'd ever had? And Bo, what would Bo think of all this? Bo was unaligned in the first place because Kenzi was human. Would losing her humanity affect the relationship they shared?

Bela seemed to pick up on Kenzi's unease, because she came closer to her and placed a calming hand on her shoulder.

"Perhaps you'll feel better after you talk to the Gamayun," she said softly.

"What?" Kenzi asked, recoiling from the touch. "The creepy bird bitch that stole my face?"

"Kanza," Bela scolded lightly. "Don't be rude. The Gamayun is a fortune-teller, and she takes on the appearance of the one whose fortune she tells."

"Consider it flattery," Kenzi's voice appeared behind them.

"God, stop _doing_ that," Kenzi yelled with a shudder. Anyone taking on her appearance and sounding like her freaked her out. It reminded her too much of Inari.

"Go sit, Kenzi, and hold out your arm," Bela instructed, both Fae ignoring Kenzi's outburst. Kenzi grudgingly did as told, sitting on the edge of the bed, and the Gamayun lighted on Kenzi's wrist. Her talons felt odd against Kenzi's delicate skin, but they didn't scratch.

"Close your eyes," the Gamayun said. "Let go of your tension, it's distracting me."

"Oh yeah," Kenzi grumbled. "This must be such an inconvenience to _you_."

But she closed her eyes and tried to relax. Then, suddenly, instead of darkness behind her eyelids, there was a foggy clearing, and a shadowed figure walking towards her.

"Hello?" she called. The person carried what looked to be a walking stick, but as they emerged from the mist, Kenzi couldn't help but gasp.

"_Lauren_?" she asked. The good doctor was wearing a regular outfit for her – jeans, blouse, and boots – but carried a winged staff that had two snakes coiled up the shaft.

_The snakes will never cease conflict without your wings._

Kenzi looked around, startled, searching for the source of the voice. But she was quickly distracted by hissing and Lauren's screams.

One snake was pure black, with glittering beads for eyes. Fangs bared, the adder flicked its tongue at the snowy-white python it dueled with. The python had blue eyes, and sunk its fangs into the adder's side in retaliation.

"Kenzi," Lauren gasped, pounding the staff into the ground in an effort to stop the snakes. "Kenzi, find your wings! Do it for us, for humanity." Lauren's brown eyes bored pleadingly into Kenzi's, and though Kenzi was confused, she nodded.

"Okay," she promised. What did Lauren mean?

Kenzi didn't have time to dwell, though, because the scene quickly changed. Kenzi was in a more familiar spot, and felt her heart pang as she remembered the many times she'd had reason to be in Trick's home.

Speaking of the bartender, Kenzi noticed a figure slumped over Trick's desk. She warily made her way over, but after tugging back the chair to see who sat there, she gravely regretted having done so.

"Trick!" she yelled, but the man did not move. His head rested at an awkward angle atop stacks of books, and his hands were torn and covered in blood. Wrapped around his left bicep was a rubber tourniquet, and Kenzi saw an old-fashioned fountain pen in his right hand. A small, leather-bound notebook sat open before him, and Kenzi saw bright red symbols scrawled across the pages. "Trick," she whispered brokenly. She shook his shoulder, trying not to hurt him but wanting him to wake. "What did you do, Trickster?"

_The blood on your hands does as much harm as good_.

There was the voice again, ethereal and raspy like a low-budget horror film narrator. Obviously, Trick had blood on his hands literally, but what did that have anything to do with Kenzi? She felt her heart squeeze as she remembered that Trick might be dead, anyway. Was that the implication? That by being human, Kenzi had gotten Trick killed?

Again, the scene faded, and Kenzi found herself on a rock ledge in the middle of the sea. Sitting a ways down from her, their faces tipped up to catch the sun, were several creatures with shiny lower halves. Kenzi made her way over to them, as if entranced. They were singing, and it was so beautiful that Kenzi just had to move closer.

"Hale?" Kenzi asked, bewildered. Most of the creatures were women, their long salt-encrusted waves hanging down to cover their bare chests, but there were a few men. Among them was the former Ash himself, burnt-orange scales shimmering in the late afternoon sun. His fins flicked in the water, as if happy to see her.

_There will always be an element of exclusion in your group_.

The mermaids Hale sat with glared at Kenzi, their tails making harsh slapping noises against the rock face. Hale caught Kenzi's eye, then looked back to his companions. He dropped his eyes, and turned his back on Kenzi.

Kenzi's anger flared. This was exactly what Hale did, all the time! He acted like he wanted to be with her, and then…and then…he always chose Fae, ten times out of ten. Never once had he stood up to those who belittled her. Kenzi tried to keep a stiff upper lip, to never show how much this betrayal affected her, but it _did_ have an effect. She liked Hale, liked him a lot, and the fact that he refused to admit that in public broke her more than Kenzi wanted to believe.

Is that what the Gamayun meant? Would Kenzi be destined to exclusion unless or until she became one of them? All her life, Kenzi had just wanted to feel like she belonged…like she had a place somewhere. She thought that she had found that with Bo, but maybe it was just an illusion.

The seascape changed to a mountainside, lush and green like Holy Mountain. Only this time, instead of an Indrik, there was a wolf. A very familiar grey wolf, one with amber eyes that looked like they could see straight through to Kenzi's soul.

"Dyson?" Kenzi asked, stepping closer to the wolf. He growled, and Kenzi quickly backtracked. "D-man?"

He growled again, and then raised his snout and sniffed. Kenzi saw the moment when he registered her scent. His pupils dilated and his eyes almost grew soft, or gentle. He whimpered, stretching his paws out and laying his head down on top of them.

"You okay, Dyson?" Kenzi asked in concern. Dyson looked up at her, and Kenzi swore she could see a flicker of his human blue. "What's wrong?"

_You will be destroyed by the wolf if you don't destroy it_.

What the hell was that supposed to mean? Was Kenzi supposed to hurt Dyson? Was he going to hurt her if she didn't make a preemptive strike? Kenzi shook her head furiously. Dyson would _never_ hurt her. He was like her brother, or her dad, or…Kenzi wasn't sure, exactly, but he was her protector. He always had been.

But even though Kenzi knew that this wolf was Dyson, it wasn't acting like him at all. Kenzi had seen Dyson in wolf form, and definitely knew him in his human form – he was tough, and bold, and always strong. This wolf was timid, unsure…was he scared of her?

"I won't hurt you, Dyson," Kenzi whispered. But the wolf shook his head. Kenzi blinked, and then there was a half-naked Dyson sitting cross-legged on the ground.

"It's not me you're hurting, Kenz," he said quietly, voice soothingly rumbly and gruff. "It's you."

"Wait, but wh—" Kenzi was whisked away before she could ask her question. She found herself in the hallway of Bo's mom's house, just as she had been when Bo told her mother that Kenzi was –

"Hey, sis," Bo said suddenly, appearing out of nowhere. But she looked different. She wasn't wearing make-up, for one, and though Kenzi thought her Bobo was gorgeous with or without, it was strange to see her without her customary smoky eye and enhanced lashes. She looked more…delicate, or younger. She was also wearing a ridiculously countrified outfit, complete with plaid shirt and mud-stained rubber boots.

"What are you wearing?" Kenzi joked lightly. But Bo frowned.

"What do you mean? Same thing I always wear, Kenz," Bo said, smiling kindly. "And at least I don't have unicorns plastered across my boobs, small as they are," she shot back.

Kenzi's mouth dropped open in shock, and she looked down. She was, sure enough, wearing a bright purple t-shirt with a smiling unicorn, rainbow mane braided and beaded like she'd been to the Bahamas. She was also wearing bell-bottom jeans and _sneakers_. What fresh Hell had she found herself in?

"Hey, where are you going?" Kenzi asked, the words flying out of her mouth as Bo walked past her to get to the front door.

"Out with Kyle and Mel, shortstack," Bo answered with an eye roll, as if they'd had this conversation a million times. "And _no_, you can't come with. You're grounded until you bring up your French grade, remember?"

_Grounded?_ "Kenzi, do you want to help me bake a pie for dessert?" Bo's mom, Mary, came out of the kitchen, dusting her hands on her apron. Her face had less wrinkles than it had the last time Kenzi had seen her, and her hair was more blonde than white. "Your father said he'd be home in time for supper, so we'll just see if that's true."

Mary turned to Bo. "Beth, are you going to be home for dinner?"

Bo nodded. "Yeah, Mel and Kyle and I are just gonna hang at the mall. I'll be back before Dad, probably."

Mary nodded. "All right, well, have a good time. And remember to thank Kyle for driving you girls, I'm sure a handsome boy like that has better things to do than play chauffeur to his little sister and her friends."

Kenzi noted Bo's blush, but didn't say anything. She vaguely remembered that Bo's adopted parents had named her Beth, but she wasn't sure why Mary had gone back to calling her Beth again. Maybe she'd forgotten? But, no, Bo was talking about hanging out with Mel and Kyle, and Mel…Mel had been the woman that came to their house, whom Hale had told that Bo was in Witness Protection. And Kyle…Mel's older brother, who was Bo's first feed.

What in the world was _happening_?

_The sister will reject you when you reject yourself_.

Kenzi looked around, up, then to Bo, then to Mary. They gave no indication that they had heard the disembodied voice, and in fact were still chattering on about Kyle.

"Okay, Mama, I'm gonna go," Bo said. She turned to Kenzi. "See ya later, kiddo."

Kenzi wanted to collapse on the ground, to scream or cry or hit her head against the floor until she woke up from this crazy-ass nightmare. She had no idea what was going on, or why the Gamayun had given her these visions. At least, she assumed that the Gamayun was responsible for this bullshit. Otherwise…

Kenzi's eyes flew open, and she took a moment to catch her breath.

"What the hell was that?" she yelled, the Gamayun floating unconcernedly before her.

"Those were the things you needed to hear before you make this decision. They will guide your way."

"But they didn't mean anything!" Kenzi protested. "Now I'm even more confused!"

"Look within, Kanza," Bela said gently. "The answers you seek are already in your heart."

Kenzi felt tears prick the backs of her eyes, and she swallowed. "Can't you give me some kind of hint?" she asked, trying for angry but falling short. Her voice just sounded desperate. "Your visions were so—"

"I did not provide the visions," the Gamayun corrected. "They are a visual interpretation of what you feel. The people you saw, the things they said…they are the tangible manifestations of your fears and hopes. Find out who and what they symbolize, and you will have your clarity."

Bela stroked Kenzi's cheek lightly with the back of her hand. "It is time for us to part, Kanza," she said quietly. "But know that my sisters and I are always watching over you. You have done a great many wonderful things in your life so far, and you will continue to do them, no matter what you choose. Have faith in yourself, _ninotchka_. We do."

Bela kissed Kenzi on the forehead, reminding her of the protective kiss that the Good Witch gave Dorothy in Munchkinland. Savoring that warm love, Kenzi allowed herself to wake up.


	7. To Be, or Not

now we're cooking with gas! i hope you like this chapter, because i always have fun writing about different types of fae. of course, no fae you recognize belongs to me – but if you recognize it from the show, please bear in mind that I HAD THE IDEA FIRST, DAMMIT. sorry, still a little miffed about last week. ahem. carry on.

* * *

"Ah, you're awake." Kenzi moaned sleepily and blinked once. She sat up, rubbing her eyes, and focused blearily on the man sitting on the arm of the couch.

"Massimo?" she asked in confusion. "What are you doing here?"

He laughed. "The question is not what _I_ am doing here – you are in _my_ house."

"How did I get here?" Kenzi asked, scooting back sharply. The small of her back bumped against the armrest, and she winced.

"Better," Massimo drawled. "Your tasks were completed. There was a charm on the runeglass to transport you here when you had filled it with the three things I had asked you to retrieve for me."

Kenzi's eyes lit up. "Well, that's great – so you can turn me Fae, now!" Even after her conversation with Bela, Kenzi knew that she was needed. If a spike in her power and a possible attitude adjustment was the trade-off for helping her family out of a jam, well…so be it.

"Ah, ah, ah, not so fast," Massimo chided. "There are a few more things that need to be taken care of. First," he said, and then got up and began rummaging through a deep drawer in a chest. He pulled out some sort of contraption with two tiny funnels connected by a parabolic tube. There was a network of leather straps hanging off the sides, and Massimo brought it over to Kenzi.

"What is this for?" Kenzi asked.

"I need you to cry for me," Massimo said.

"You need me to _cry_?"

He gave her a look. "I mean, if you don't want to become Fae…"

"I do, I do!" Kenzi said quickly. "You need me to cry? No problem!"

"They need to be real tears, too," Massimo warned. "The potion won't work if you don't have real emotion behind them."

Mentally, Kenzi rolled her eyes. She was great at crying on command – just not at actually meaning it. She allowed Massimo to secure the mask to her face, and Kenzi realized what it was. Bo had told her about her adventures in Brazenwood, and the total creeps trying to exploit that teenage Squonk girl. Kenzi recognized that this was a device meant for siphoning Squonk tears – the "funnels" were under her eyes, connected to the tube, which led to a reservoir.

"So, um…" Kenzi said awkwardly, after a couple minutes had gone by. "How do I do this?"

Massimo shrugged. "Figure something out. You know better than I do what gets you upset."

Kenzi closed her eyes. When was the last time she'd cried? After Inari, maybe – though she'd quickly put an end to that. If she'd learned one thing in life, it was that crying never solved anything. Crying was weakness.

_That's really helpful, thank you_, Kenzi griped to her inner voice. Sometimes that thing could be _so_ pass-agg. _Think, Kenzi_.

Kenzi remembered the last time she was at Massimo's. Her mind had been bombarded with images and phrases of awful things that people had said to her, about her. Kenzi wanted to block out those voices – tell them they were wrong – but she couldn't. Her friends and family were overpowering. She couldn't just tell them to stuff it, and she also couldn't fully believe that what they said was untrue.

But she had analyzed those comments to the point of being threadbare. In order to move past those things, she would need to talk to the individuals that had said and done them. Right now, she had more pressing things on her mind – like what those visions with the Gamayun had meant.

The Gamayun had said that the fortunes were hers, but that the visions came from Kenzi's subconscious. Did that mean that, subconsciously, Kenzi already knew the things that the Gamayun told her? Kenzi shook her head slightly. How could she know? The Gamayun was so fucking cryptic. Like, in Lauren's vision, what was up with the snakes? One black, one white, both attacking each other while –

"The Light and the Dark," Kenzi muttered, her eyes flashing open.

"Did you say something?" Massimo asked, turning around from where he was stirring a bubbling cauldron of something.

"No, no," Kenzi assured him. It made perfect sense. The Light Fae and Dark Fae were constantly at each other's throats, each spewing venom and vitriol at every turn. And Lauren was there, because…Kenzi furrowed her brow. The snakes on the staff had looked oddly familiar to Kenzi, like she'd seen it somewhere before. It wasn't the emblem of the Light – Kenzi had seen Lauren's necklace and special badges that Dyson and Hale had. The Light symbol was more of a diamond or an oval, with a sun-like spiral in the center. Kenzi had also seen Dark para-fae-rnalia, having spent time with Vex, Bruce, and the Morrigan. Their sign was a crescent moon, flipped around to look like the front of a capital 'd', with a spear connecting the points.

Suddenly, Kenzi remembered something from a long time ago. Or, it seemed like it was a long time ago – but really, it had only been a couple of years since she'd eaten tainted Aswang soup and gotten poisoned by the basilisk. Bo had caught her when she collapsed at James Sibley's house, and then succu-bustled them both back to Dr. Lauren's lab. But in her eye-bloodied stupor, Kenzi had noticed a symbol above the door as she and Bo went crashing through – a staff, with wings on top, and two snakes coiled around it.

So it made sense that Lauren was the one to bring her the message of the Dark and Light – the staff was her symbol. But what did she mean about the wings? Was Kenzi supposed to – what, fix the conflict? But how could she, when both Light and Dark were out for human blood?

_Do it for humanity_, Lauren had said. Maybe the fact that she would not be human soon would help her? But that didn't feel right, because even if she _was_ Fae, she still would be Kenzi, pet of the unaligned Succubus. _Do it for us_. Maybe Lauren was telling her that she needed to stay human, in order to save the humans?

Kenzi shook her head. _What does Dr. Hotpants know, anyway?_ she silently scoffed. Kenzi wanted to pace, to do something besides sit on this couch and try to cry. She rubbed her hands on her thighs, trying to loosen herself up. As she did so, though, she remembered her vision of Trick.

_Blood on your hands_. She began to try and use her pants to scrub off imaginary blood, as if she was the one who'd had it on her. Then she stopped. That phrase meant something, didn't it? It was…an idiom. It meant guilt. Kenzi smiled self-deprecatingly. The vision hadn't been about Trick at all – it was about _her_. Trick was the Blood King, and he wrote in his blood. That's why his hands were covered. And Kenzi's subconscious held her accountable for his supposed death, which is why he had appeared as he did. But that was the point – Kenzi's guilt was the blood on her hands. She had guilt about Trick, and about Bo, and even about being a human. It was true, Kenzi thought, that her guilt motivated her…but maybe it was also holding her back.

Kenzi didn't want to think about Hale's vision, and she was pretty sure she'd figured that one out anyway. So she thought about Dyson's.

Dyson, being Dyson, had raised as many questions as he'd answered. He'd said that she wasn't hurting him, she was hurting herself. So what did that mean? What did the Gamayun mean when she said _the wolf will destroy you if you don't destroy it_?

_The wolf will destroy you_. If Dyson wasn't the wolf…did he mean that Kenzi was the wolf? Or that, maybe, the wolf was inside her? Maybe the wolf wasn't a wolf at all, but some sort of metaphor. Kenzi gripped her head in both hands. This over-analyzing was giving her a monster of a headache.

Kenzi massaged her temples lightly with the pads of her fingers. She played a little word association game with herself, only she just had one word to associate. _Wolf_. Wolf – howl. Wolf – moon. Wolf – hairy. _Dyson is gonna kill me_. Wolf – pack. Wolf – lone. _Lone Wolf?_ Kenzi thought. Could the wolf signify loneliness? But Dyson had seemed more…tentative than isolated. Almost like he wanted to connect with her, but he was afraid.

Kenzi had a relative – she might've been a great-aunt, she might've been a second cousin – who had supposedly had some Native blood in her. At one point, she'd wanted to read everyone she met and figure out his or her totem. Kenzi had heard her say once that if you did not become the wolf in your totem vision, it was because the wolf represented an external force making you feel uneasy about your place.

That certainly seemed to be true of Kenzi. There was a huge external force making her feel uncertain about her place in the world, namely the Fae Elders. And, she supposed, Dyson represented that to her because he was the wolf, but also because he had been the first Fae (besides Bo, of course) she really got to know, and he signified all that she could never measure up to. Sure, Bo loved Kenzi because Kenzi was human – but Bo loved Dyson because Bo _and_ Dyson were Fae.

Kenzi wrinkled her nose, somewhat disgusted with herself. It was so disrespectful of the Kenzi brand to be wallowing in self-pity like this, but she couldn't help herself. For once in her life, she was not going to dive headfirst into a life-changing thing without doing some real pro and con weighing.

And speaking of cons, what wool had the Gamayun pulled over her eyes with that last vision? Bo had looked younger, and hadn't seemed at all fazed by her mother calling her Beth, or Kenzi wearing Lisa Frank, or hanging out in her hometown with Kyle and Mel…had they actually _been_ younger? If Bo had been eighteen, Kenzi would've been thirteen – thus the shoes and flatter chest and even smaller stature. And so they actually _were_ sisters, not just "sistas from other mistas" as they were in reality. That notion lumped in Kenzi's throat, and she felt tears well up in her eyes.

"I love you, Bo," she whispered. She bit her lip, looking up to see if Massimo had heard, but he was still ensconced in his foaming vat. Kenzi bit down harder, trying to keep a sob from escaping as she let the flurry of feeling become a blizzard. Bo, taking Kenzi home safely after she'd been drugged. Kenzi, heart inexplicably ripping in two as she saw Bo weaken in the face of the Pain-Eater. Time after time, they saved each other. Kenzi knew now that she would do anything to save her sister, even if that meant losing herself in the process.

"Massimo," Kenzi said hoarsely, voice soggy but strong. "I'm ready now."

"Lovely," he said. He stirred his pot a final time and then walked back over to her, a crumbly and ancient-looking book in his hand. "While you work, there's still the matter of figuring out what Fae you'll become."

"You mean, I can choose?" Kenzi asked excitedly.

"What did you think would happen?" Massimo asked her in amusement.

Kenzi flushed slightly. "Well, I don't know…I guess I thought it would kinda be like in _Harry Potter_, you know? The wand chooses the wizard, or whatever."

Massimo rolled his eyes. "Humans," he chuckled. "Well, let's see here. You've got a couple of options. Number one," he began, pulling on a ribbon that was marking the page. "Ah, yes. The _Alkonost_."

"What's that?" Kenzi inquired.

"She's Russian bird Fae," Massimo replied. "Her song has the ability to charm, even overpower, humans and Fae alike. She has been known to lure people to their death with her voice alone."

Kenzi grew thoughtful, then frowned. "You mean, kind of like a siren?" she asked him, recalling Greek and Russian myths her grandfather used to tell her.

Massimo shrugged. "I guess. But the Alkonost has wings!"

Kenzi grimaced. "What else?"

"Hmm. How about…the _Devana_?"

"That sounds vaguely familiar," Kenzi mused. "Wasn't Devana a goddess?"

"Right you are, Kenzi! Yes, the original Devana, like many First Fae, was a goddess. And Devanae retain some of her greatest qualities, like her affinity with children, animals, and the moon. But they have also evolved and advanced. Whereas Devana herself merely had a wolf familiar, Devanae today actually embody the wolf."

Kenzi's face fell. "So, they're wolf-shifters."

"Precisely!"

"Next!" Kenzi directed.

"Fine, but this is your last option!" Massimo snapped testily.

"What is this, _Pokémon_?" Kenzi griped. Massimo ignored her.

"The _Rusalka_," Massimo started proudly, "is a Russian water Fae. She is known for her mesmerizing dance, a dance so powerful that the strongest men cannot resist her pull. Rusalki gain their power from drawing a man – or woman – to her, dancing with them until they are weakened, and then draining their vitality with a kiss."

"What the hell, Massimo?" Kenzi yelled, standing up and ripping the mask off her face.

"Kenzi, no! What are you doing?" he screeched.

"What are _you_ doing?" she asked him. "You give me three options – pretty pathetic, by the way, since there are thousands of Fae species out there – that are all Russian, and they all have powers associated with my friends?"

"That's not my fault," Massimo said snottily, though his face was nervous. "You're human! You can only be certain types of Fae. In your case, that's female Fae of Russian origin."

"You know, I'm pretty sure I read the fine print when we made this deal, and I don't recall there being any conditions," Kenzi growled. "I'm starting to think that maybe you're not who you say you are."

Massimo's face went pale. "Wh-what? Why would you think that? I – I am the Druid! I am Massimo the Druid!"

"Methinks the Faeby doth protest too much," Kenzi quipped, narrowing her eyes. "How do you explain this, Massimo?"

Kenzi held a thin vial of viscous serum up to the light. Massimo froze.

"Where did you get that?" he asked her, eyes terrified.

"Found it in your chest of drawers on the island," Kenzi drawled. "Seems like someone's been masking their _humanity_ with a little eau de Skunk-Ape, no?"

"I'm not human! Humans are weak and pathetic! And Evony – she _promised_—"

Kenzi snorted. "As if. You should know that the Morrigan, of all people, is balls at making promises for keeps. The only person whose trust she values is herself, and that ain't goin' nowhere."

"Please don't hurt me," Massimo whimpered, sinking to the floor with his hands above his head in surrender.

Kenzi scoffed. "I may be street, but I'm no bully." At the look of relief in his eyes, Kenzi amended her statement. "But in exchange for your life, I'm gonna need a couple things from you."

"Anything!" Massimo said eagerly, looking like a puppy that had just been offered a chance to play fetch.

A few minutes later, Kenzi was armed and raring to go. Shutting Massimo's door behind her, Kenzi stood in the clearing she'd last seen five days ago. She rubbed her hands together, feeling static buzz between her fingers.

"Get ready for showtime, Faedies and germs – it's Kenzi, bitch."


	8. Welcome Back

well, this chapter took a turn. i think this story might go on a bit longer than i had anticipated. oops? yay? there will be some events from the show, but they might be a little jumbled. regardless, if for some reason you haven't been watching s4...spoilers ahead. hope you enjoy!

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"Bo? Bo-nanza? Bobalicious? Boba Fett?" Kenzi called out for her friend, moving quietly through the downstairs of the clubhouse. Everything felt…strange. Bruce hadn't been at his post when Kenzi crossed the bridge, and the Morrigan's car was gone. Kenzi had tried not to think much of it, but what if something had happened to him? Then, the town felt deserted, almost ghost-like. There were humans milling around, acting normal, but Kenzi hadn't seen any familiar Fae-ces.

"Hello?" A tentative, almost childlike voice answered Kenzi's from the top of the stairs. "Dyson, is that you?"

"Who's there?" Kenzi asked.

"It's me, Tamsin," the voice answered, and feet tramped down the stairs until the speaker was face to face with Kenzi.

"You're wearing my pants," was the only thing Kenzi could think to say.

"They're totally fresh, aren't they?" Tamsin asked cheerfully, doing a little twirl. "Dysie said I could wear 'em because he didn't wanna take me shopping," she pouted.

_Dysie?_ Kenzi thought in confusion. She gave Tamsin a hard glare. "Who the hell are you, and why do you look like Tamsin?"

Tamsin's chin began to tremble. "I _am_ Tamsin," she said nervously. "Are you…oh no, are you bad? Dyson said I shouldn't talk to strangers, but no one has ever come in here before but friends, and Trick said the powder would keep bad guys out and—"

Tamsin was beginning to cry, and Kenzi felt badly. She put a gentle arm around the girl. "Um…don't cry, T, it's okay. I'm sorry, I just…I've been gone for a while, and I didn't know D-man would use the Clubhouse while I was, so I wasn't expecting you."

"Oh," Tamsin said, brightening up. "Are you Kenzi? Hale and Dyson told me all about you – they said I could sleep in your room, and it's really cool!"

"Thanks," Kenzi said with a chuckle. "Wait. Don't you…remember me?"

"Did I know you before?" Tamsin asked, furrowing her brow. "I can't really…sorry, the only things I know about my past life are that I'm dark, and I used to be a cop with Dyson."

"Past life?"

"Um, yeah, I'm a Valkyrie?" Tamsin said, rolling her eyes a little. "We get reborn when we die."

"Hmm, swans and rebirth. Cool," Kenzi mumbled to herself. "Hey, Baby Tams, do you know where Dyson and Hale might be?"

"Maybe at the Dal," Tamsin said with a shrug. "They said they had some work to do with Trick."

"Okay, well…are you cool alone? You don't need, like, someone to watch you?"

"No duh, I'm like five weeks old!" Tamsin flounced back upstairs, and Kenzi shook her head.

"Kids these days," she muttered, grabbing her bag and heading back out.

When she got to the Dal, Kenzi was amazed at how quiet it was. There were many patrons – way more, really, than usual for weekday daylight hours – but no one seemed to be having fun. In fact, barely anyone was talking or drinking, they just sat silently looking depressed.

Kenzi observed that Trick was not behind the bar, so she figured that the boys were down in the Narnian caverns. Kenzi made her way to the familiar steps, but was held up by a gate she didn't recognize.

"Coded? Trickster, you amateur," Kenzi murmured with a smirk. She thought for a moment, and then figured out the code. Kenzi pressed the asterisk, and then the 2, and then keyed in Bo's birthday. The gate buzzed, and Kenzi let herself in.

"So in order to get to where she is, we need to—" Dyson was saying, but Trick cut him off.

"Shh," he whispered. "Someone's coming."

Kenzi had hoped that she would be able to surprise the men, but shrugged off her small pout and continued into the basement quarters.

"Halt, trespasser!" A dagger was leveled at her ribcage, and Kenzi automatically sucked in her stomach with a gasp. Trick's eyes glittered in the shadows, and Kenzi was sure that he could hear the tremulous beating of her heart.

"Trick, it's me," she whimpered, trying to regain even breathing.

"I – _Kenzi_?" Trick's eyes widened, and he sheathed the blade. When his hands were free, he used one to grab her by the wrist, and he dragged her into the main room.

"Kenzi!" Hale and Dyson said in unison. Hale stood first, and wrapped Kenzi in a tight hug.

"Hey, Lil' Mama," he whispered into her hair. "It's so good to see you."

At a less-than-gentle nudge, Hale relinquished his hold and passed the girl off to Dyson, who embraced Kenzi with equal strength.

"We had no idea what had happened to you, Kenz," Dyson said, pulling back and cupping Kenzi's face with one broad hand. "God, we got a visit from a Dark Fae, someone named Bruce—"

"You saw Bruce? Is he okay?" Kenzi asked excitedly, leaping from Dyson's arms and looking at each face for answers.

Hale's eyes narrowed. "He's fine," he growled. "_You're_ the one we were worried about."

"I know I left without saying anything, but I couldn't reach you guys – you, Dyson, I thought you were still at Taft's, and Hale…" Kenzi remembered something, and dug around in her pocket. "Thank you," she said, pressing the Twig of Zamora into Hale's palm. "You have no idea how much this helped." Kenzi stretched up on her tiptoes and pecked him lightly on the cheek.

Then Kenzi spun around, looking at Trick with fresh eyes. "Trickster! The Morrigan, she said you were – so all this time, I thought…oh, god," Kenzi said, bending low and grabbing Trick in a hug. "I thought you were dead, Trick."

Trick patted her back soothingly. "I'm not," he said. "I just had to get away for a bit. I think we all did."

Kenzi kissed his cheek, his whiskery face tickling her lips. Then she pulled back. "Yeah, about that. Where is Bo?"

Dyson and Hale looked at each other, and when Kenzi looked back at Trick, he seemed upset and angry.

"We don't know, Kenzi," he answered quietly. "For a while, we forgot about her entirely."

"You _what_? How could you forget Bo? That's like…that's like forgetting your birthday, or your favorite flavor of ice cream, or—"

"We know," Dyson said gruffly. "We didn't forget on purpose. We were made to forget."

"By whom?" Kenzi asked.

"We don't know that, either," Hale answered.

"But I was only gone for a couple of days," Kenzi said. "How could all this have happened so fast?"

Hale and Dyson both gave Trick worried looks.

"What?" Kenzi asked.

"Kenzi, you were gone for over a month," Trick said softly.

"But I – how is that possible?" Kenzi's head was spinning. There were too many questions, and not enough answers, and Kenzi felt suddenly drained and travel-weary. It had been a day.

"Hey, Lil' Mama," Hale appeared behind her, guiding Kenzi to a seat on the couch. "Relax, it's okay."

Kenzi rested her head on his shoulder, and Dyson and Trick sat in chairs across from them. Dyson looked at the two of them with a knowing smirk, and Kenzi stuck out her tongue.

"Bo disappeared from the bar about six weeks ago, to our estimation," Trick began. "Something trashed the place, but I'm not sure exactly what it was. What we know so far is that she is not on this physical plane."

"She's _dead_?" Kenzi gasped.

"No, not that kind of plane," Trick explained gently. "In this world, there are…different realms, so to speak. Bo still exists, but she has been taken to another realm. Not everyone is able to realm-jump, which is why we are having difficulty retrieving her."

"Well, there's gotta be somebody, right?" Kenzi asked. "I mean, somebody had to grab Bo and take her to this place – so there's at least one person who can do it."

Trick nodded. "There is someone I knew of named Endymion – Eddy, more commonly. But for the last 800 years or so, he has proved himself somewhat…elusive. Dyson finally located him, but it seems that his powers have been transferred. We are currently in talks with the new Eddy, a…friend…of Dyson and Hale's, but we need to find a ticket."

"Ticket?" Kenzi asked.

"There are trains to get to each plane," Dyson said. "But each trip has its own kind of ticket. This ticket would be specifically linked to Bo, somehow. We've searched your house, but nothing turned up."

"That place is a death trap, by the way," Trick said, eyeing Kenzi sternly. "It's a wonder neither of you have died living in that hovel."

"Remind me to have that embroidered on a pillow," Kenzi quipped. At Trick's glare, she continued, "Honestly, Gramps, everything's kosher. No need to get your panties in a twist."

Hale stifled a laugh at Trick's indignant expression. "Where else could a ticket be?"

"What if whatever took her left it in Bo's place?" Kenzi asked, looking over at a stack of crates by Trick's desk. "Is that stuff you took from the bar?"

Trick frowned. "I guess so, but I don't really remember doing it."

"Have you looked through them?" Kenzi walked over to the boxes and began to unstack and sort through them. Most of it was broken stuff – a dinged-up lamp, some torn books – or odds and ends, but Kenzi lifted what looked like a tarot card from the crate on the bottom. "Hey, look at this," she said, calling the guys over. "That's Bo!"

"It is," Trick agreed. Though the illustration was only of a woman's back, it was obviously Bo, from the hair to the dagger to the impossibly-tight leather pants. Next to her was a red-haired man in an overcoat, with the caption "THE WANDERER" across the bottom.

"Ow!" Kenzi yelled. As she held the card in her hands, it began to glow, and then it caught on fire. "Oh my god!"

"Kenzi, drop it!" Hale yelled, rushing over to her. He wrapped his arms around her from behind and looked at her hands, making sure they weren't burned. Dyson quickly stomped the flames out, and Trick grabbed the tongs from beside his fireplace to pick up the card and examine it more closely.

"Hale, I'm okay," Kenzi said, once the shock had worn off. Realizing their positions, Hale quickly let her go.

"MMXV," Trick read. "That's…two-thousand and fifteen. I don't know what that means, though."

"Could it be where Bo is – or when?" Kenzi theorized.

"It's a possibility," Trick nodded. "Dyson, why don't you contact Cleo and tell her that you have the ticket? She knows where the station is, yes?"

"Somewhere along the train tracks," Dyson answered. "Not that that's much to go on, but we can walk along until we find them."

"Cool," Kenzi said. "When do we leave?" She began to move past Dyson, but he stopped her with an arm at her torso.

Dyson shook his head. "No way, Kenzi."

"No way what, no way? There's _no way_ I'm not going with you," Kenzi said forcefully.

"I can't let you come, Kenz," Dyson said gently, putting his hands on Kenzi's waist to calm her. "It's too dangerous."

"Are you fucking kidding me?" Kenzi asked. "I slayed the Indrik, tamed Simargl, and killed Koschei the Deathless, but a train ride is too much for me? Screw you, Dyson, I'm going!"

"You did what?" Trick interrupted. "But that's impossible!"

Kenzi wheeled around, focusing on Trick. "What's impossible?"

"All of that! I…many Fae have tried to slay the Indrik over the years, but no one has succeeded. And Simargl…if unleashed, he would destroy the universe!"

Kenzi shrugged. "It was no biggie, honestly. I did what I had to."

Trick was still gaping at her when Dyson continued. "Kenzi, you know I think very highly of you. But this is more than just fighting. This is crossing boundaries even Fae aren't supposed to cross, let alone humans."

"When will you get this through your head, Wolf? I'm so much more than my species, and I _am_ doing this – for Bo! I would think that you, of all people, would understand."

"This is _not_ a discussion!" Dyson growled. "You are staying put if I have to knock you out and tie you to your bed to make it happen!"

"You're being ridiculous, Dyson, you have to let me go!"

"Enough!" Trick roared, startling them both and making Hale cover his sensitive ears. "The both of you need to stop. Kenzi, why don't you and Hale stay here and make sure that everything is set for Bo's return? Dyson, you go meet Cleo, and I'll hold down the fort. Am I clear?"

"Yes, Trick," they all muttered. Kenzi shot a covert glare at Dyson, and grabbed Hale by the wrist as she stalked out of the cavern.

"C'mon, Siren," she groused. "Let's go home."

They detoured at the drugstore, picking up a few things Kenzi thought Bo might need. Back at the Clubhouse, Hale followed Kenzi up to Bo's room. Kenzi felt Hale's eyes on her as she angrily fluffed pillows and organized the gift basket on Bo's bedside table.

"This is so stupid," she muttered angrily.

"It's nice, Kenzi," Hale said. She turned to him, scowling darkly. "The gifts, they're a nice gesture," he continued, eyes wide.

"That's not what I meant, of course this is nice," Kenzi grumbled. "I've got all her favorites – candy, chocolate, silk ropes, blindfolds, a brand-spanking-new vibe, and her favorite kimono all washed and pressed." Kenzi frowned. "What's stupid is mean old Dirty Hairy and the fact that he thinks he can keep me here like a baby!"

"He just doesn't want you getting hurt, Kenz," Hale explained cautiously. "None of us do."

"Well that's just tough shit, ain't it, Hale?" Kenzi asked, turning away from the bed and back to him. "Where the hell were you – where were _any_ of you – when the Morrigan was trying to off my ass and turn me into Fae food? Where were you when I nearly got gored to death by the Indrik, or knocked out by the Doomsday Hound, or beaten by Baba Yaga's son? Where were you when Massimo tried to drain me of my humanity so he could become more powerful? Where were you when I needed _somebody_, Hale?"

Hale looked both flummoxed and uncomfortable, but Kenzi soldiered on. "I get that to you, I'm just some weak, pathetic human pet who needs looking after. But as nice as it is that you want to take care of me, sometimes it's suffocating. And because I can't protect myself, I keep putting you in situations where you have to come to my rescue. That isn't fair to any of us, Hale, don't you get it? It's a vicious cycle that will keep repeating itself unless or until we do something about it! I wanna do something about it!"

Hale stood up and grabbed Kenzi by the shoulders. "Don't you _ever_ think that you're pathetic to me. You're perfect, Kenzi," Hale said. "You're perfect, and I couldn't live with myself if something happened to you."

"Something already is happening, Hale, that's my point," Kenzi said, wiggling out of his grasp. "Stuff already has happened, and it will continue to happen. Bo is my family, and I need to be there for her. I can't—" she smiled sadly up at him "—maybe when this is all over, things will be different for us. Maybe then I can give you the attention you deserve. But right now, Hale, when she's gone? I can't focus on anything else but getting her back."

Hale took off his fedora, flipping it over in his hands. "You need a ride to the tracks?" he asked quietly.

Kenzi's face lit up, and she wrapped her arms around his neck. "Gimme a minute, and I'll be ready to go."


	9. Your Dreams Were Your Ticket Out

no lost girl today :( but it's okay, i guess, because i'm still not over yule.

this chapter felt a little ooc to me, so please excuse any characterizations you don't think are right.

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"Be safe, Kenz," Hale said, dropping Kenzi off a safe distance from where Cleo and Dyson were walking. She got out of the car, but leaned into his rolled-down window. "Don't get caught, or I won't be able to help you."

"Yeah, I know," Kenzi nodded. "I've got my gear, my binoculars, and treats for Bo-Bo. I'm good."

"Okay," Hale said. "See you soon."

"Sooner than soon," Kenzi agreed. She patted the hood of his car, and he was off. Kenzi then put her greatest tracking skills to use, following Dyson and Cleo from a respectable distance and making sure she was both unseen and unheard.

After a few hundred yards, though, the pair disappeared behind a large building. The track curved in such a way that Kenzi couldn't stray from it without revealing herself, so she figured she would have to get up on the roof of the building and watch from there. Luckily, there was a ladder that stretched up the side, and Kenzi climbed as carefully and quietly as she could. Once on the roof, Kenzi stretched out and focused her binoculars on the pair. Beyond them a ways, she saw two yellow and red hot dog carts, with a blurry swoop in between them that crossed the tracks. At first, Kenzi thought it was her eyes. She didn't have the keenest vision, as Dyson knew, and she was too stubborn to wear glasses. But as she increased the zoom on her binoculars, she realized that the blur was from the carts existing in two places at once.

"This is the temporal schism," she whispered. Quick as a flash, she stowed her binoculars in her bag and clambered back down the roof. There was no time to waste, because if Kenzi had it figured it out, so did Dyson. Kenzi was about twenty yards out when Cleo put the ticket in the machine, and the dull roar and tunneled wind of the train approaching almost knocked Kenzi off her feet. But she ran to catch up with Dyson and Cleo as they stood in the middle of the tracks.

_Shit_, Kenzi thought. _What if Dyson sees me?_ Then Kenzi saw Dyson and Cleo vanish. In a moment, so did she.

Kenzi put her hands on her ears. Her head was pounding like crazy, and she felt dizzier and more nauseated than the night she'd downed an entire bottle of Buckthorn mead. She looked around. She was in a hallway of some kind, and the door before her was rattling slightly.

"You!" A voice distracted her from the door. "Who are you, trespasser, and what are you doing here?" A scared-looking blonde woman in a vintage-y maid's uniform was standing before Kenzi, wringing her hands.

"Um, just passing through," Kenzi said. "Do you know someone named Bo?"

The maid's eyes widened, and she clapped a hand over Kenzi's mouth.

"Hush!" the maid ordered sharply. "What kind of evil are you?"

Kenzi pulled away. "I'm not evil, I'm here to save my friend! Do you know her?"

The maid's eyes were bright and frightened, and she grabbed a vase of flowers off a side table and held it aloft.

"I will hurt you if I have to," she warned.

Kenzi pulled a little baggie of deep red powder from her purse and sprinkled a bit into her palm. "Sorry, lady," she said with a shrug, blowing the powder into the woman's eyes. "Ain't nobody got time for that." The woman's mouth opened in a yawn, and then she dropped to the floor, dead asleep.

"Score one for Massimo," she whispered. "And good disguise, too."

Kenzi quickly stripped off her jeans and shirt, exchanging the street clothes for the maid's cap and uniform. She fixed the buttons on her pinafore, covered the maid with a random tablecloth, and busted open the lock on the doorknob that was still jiggling.

A young woman with matted hair and a silky pink gown sprang away from the door when Kenzi burst through it. Her eyes darted around the room, looking for an escape. Kenzi gasped.

"Bo!" Kenzi cried. She wrapped her bestie in a hug, tears forming in her eyes.

"Who – who are you?" was the muffled question into her shoulder.

Kenzi pulled back. "Bo? It's me, Kenzi."

"Kenzi…" Bo said slowly, as if tasting the word. "Kenz. Kenz! The lock-picker!"

Kenzi squinted and tilted her head to the side. "Um, and your BFF?"

"Best friend forever," Bo repeated. "You…you were blonde, and I saved you. You wanted to be my manager, you said we'd make a good team. Right?"

"Right! You said I was like the sister you never had and never wanted to lose, and I said that you were like the big sister I never had but always wanted. We're family, Bo-Bo, you and me."

"Family…" Bo said quietly. Her eyes glowed blue for a moment, and then returned to deep, warm brown. "Oh, Kenzi!" Bo squealed. She wrapped her arms around Kenzi, hugging her tightly. "Kenzi, I'm so happy to see you. Oh my god, I thought I'd never see you again! I thought I'd never see any of you again."

"What happened, Bo?" Kenzi asked. "Where have you been?"

"I…I don't know," Bo said with a frown. "I think I've been here, but I have no idea what's happened. Her eyes widened, and Kenzi saw a vulnerability and fear in them that set her nerves on fire. "Kenz, we have to get out of here. This place, it's not safe – not for you, and definitely not for me."

Kenzi nodded. "Okay, sure. How do we get off this train?"

Bo shrugged. "Um, I don't know?"

Kenzi refrained from rolling her eyes. Sure, Bo was helpless, but she was still her Bo. "Okay, well, have you seen anyone else?"

Bo shook her head. "Nuh-uh, only you. But there is…there's someone else here, I can feel him. He's strong, Kenzi, really strong." Bo grabbed Kenzi's hands, looking into her eyes with terrified conviction.

"Well, why don't I do some recon? See if there is a fire escape or a tunnel to China or some other kind of exit strategy. Okay? You just sit tight, Bo, I'll be back soon."

Kenzi gently pulled her hands from Bo's grasp and planted a soft kiss on her cheek. As she turned to go, Bo said,

"There's something different about you, Kenz. I don't know what it is, but it's…new."

Kenzi whirled about, biting her lip. "Do you totally hate it?"

Bo shook her head. "No, it's…god, Kenz, it's beautiful. It's powerful. It's…you."

Kenzi ducked her head, blushing slightly. "I'll be back soon," she repeated. She stepped back into the hallway, shutting Bo's door quietly behind her. As she made her way down the car, she heard voices.

"Looks like the conductor forgot his glasses!" someone said. Kenzi heard footsteps, and flattened herself against the wall.

"Wait, what am I doing?" she muttered to herself. "The whole point of being incognito is acting incognito." Kenzi needed to find the dining car, get some foodstuffs for her and Bo, and find a way to get them of this train. She shook herself off and began walking purposefully, but not too fast or slow to be conspicuous. All that ended, though, when Kenzi heard someone behind her.

"Excuse me, Miss!" a gruff voice called. "Do you know someone named Bo?"

_Shitballs, shitballs, shitballs a la mode_, Kenzi thought. She kept walking as if she didn't hear him, but she should've known that wolf legs were faster than human ones – especially when said wolf was 6'3", and said human was 5'4".

"Miss!" Dyson yelled, spinning her around. Kenzi wished she could melt into the floor, but settled for looking adorably confused.

"Fancy meeting you here, D," she said with a grin.

"_Kenzi_," he growled.

"You know her, Dyson?" Kenzi peered over Dyson's shoulder at a dark-haired woman in a shirt with sleeves poufy enough to be their own zeppelins.

"Cleo, meet Kenzi," he answered dully. "My incredibly obstinate, trouble-making, friend of a human."

"How ya doin'?" Kenzi nodded at Cleo.

"I assume you're also looking for Bo?" Cleo asked her.

Kenzi shook her head. "Looking for the conductor, actually. Trying to find a way off this thing. Bo's room is back there," Kenzi pointed.

"I don't know whether to hug you or tan your hide," Dyson growled in Kenzi's ear. "Maybe both."

"Rescue first, D-man, and then hugging," Kenzi said quickly. Dyson slapped her ass as she scurried in front of him, leading them to Bo's room, and Kenzi whipped around.

"Would you like to keep your paws attached to your body?" she hissed. Dyson smirked, and Kenzi stuck out her tongue. When they reached the door, Kenzi knocked.

"Bo, honey?" Kenzi called. "Um, you've got some other visitors." She opened the door to find Bo sitting right where she'd left her, and let Cleo and Dyson go in first before she let herself in and locked the door again.

"Dyson!" Bo said. She got up and wrapped her arms tightly around his neck. "Oh, Dyson, it's so good to see you."

"Good to see you too, Bo," Dyson rumbled. He pulled back and gave her an amused smirk. "What are you wearing?"

"I've been wearing this princess shit since I got here," she shrugged. "I don't know."

"Hi, I'm Cleo," Cleo said, sticking out her hand.

"She helped me get to you," Dyson said. "Well, helped _us_, I guess," he added, with a side glare at Kenzi.

"Oh, you came together?" Bo asked innocently.

"Yes," Kenzi said.

"No," Dyson overlapped her.

Bo shook her head. "Whatever. I'm just glad you're here. But now, we've got to go. Kenz, did you find any exits?"

"_Nyet_," Kenzi answered. "Ran into Wolfie and Cleo before I could do much looking." She looked around Bo's room. "Where does that door lead?" she asked, pointing. "Outside?"

"I've never checked," Bo admitted. She walked to the wrought-iron and glass portal, opening it with a loud creak. "Yes, Kenzi, outside!"

"Do we jump?" Kenzi asked nervously.

"No!" Cleo yelled. "If you jump, you'll die. It's not safe!"

"Well, how else are we supposed to get off this train?" Kenzi snapped. "I don't see you coming up with any brilliant ideas."

"How do you think you got on this train in the first place, human? Magic? No, I got you your ticket, and I got you on here!"

"_I _found the ticket, Bitchy Britches, so if anyone's taking credit for that, it's going to be me!"

"Hey!" Bo and Dyson yelled simultaneously.

"That's enough," Bo said, pulling Kenzi away from Cleo. Dyson pulled Cleo back too.

"Cleo, do you have any other ideas?" Dyson asked calmly.

Cleo opened her mouth, then closed it and shook her head. "If we do this, we jump together. There's no telling where we'll end up if we go separately."

"There's only room for two of us on the platform at a time, though," Bo pointed out.

"Okay, we'll jump in pairs. Dyson and Kenzi, then Bo and me."

"No fae-ing way, Cleo-bratra," Kenzi said. "Me and Bo, or no go."

"Kenzi," Dyson said warningly.

"No, that's fine," Cleo said, with a long-suffering sigh. "One of you needs to leave us an artifact, though, so I can trace you," Cleo said. At Bo and Kenzi's suspicious looks, she said, "I'm an Elemental, it's what I do!"

"Dyson, knife," Bo said quickly. He handed her the dagger from his boot, and she sawed a small strip of blush-colored silk from the hem of her dress. She handed it to Cleo, and then she and Kenzi stepped out onto the balcony.

"Just remember," Cleo warned. "You'll start to feel sick when you land. I can heal you when I get there, but do not over-exert yourselves! Especially you, human."

"See you soon, Bo," Dyson promised. "Later, Kenz."

Bo and Kenzi both nodded, Kenzi with an extra eye-roll, and Dyson and Cleo stepped away from the doors. It was just Bo and Kenzi again, like old times.

"Guess it's do or die, Kenz," Bo said. She held out her hand, palm facing up. Kenzi grabbed onto it gratefully, and Bo gave her a little squeeze. "Together-like?" she asked.

"Always," Kenzi agreed. "On the count of three, okay? One,"

"Two,"

"Three!"

Bo and Kenzi jumped into the foggy abyss, their skirts billowing as they floated to the ground. Bo managed to land on her feet, while Kenzi stumbled and tipped over on her hands and knees.

"Kenz, you okay?" Bo asked.

"Aces, Bobolo," Kenzi answered. In a second, Bo was hunched over, clutching her stomach in pain. "You good, Succu-babe?"

"Hurts, Kenzi," Bo choked out. "Hunger…it's strong."

"Oh," Kenzi said nervously. "_Oh_. Um, well, it's kinda just us, out here…" _Dammit, Kenzi, you just got Bo back. Don't blow this shit by letting her die._ "You can take some of mine."

"I can't," Bo whimpered. "I can't…do that…to you. What about…what Cleo…said?"

"Sure you can!" Kenzi said brightly. "Never mind Cleo. You don't have time to wait for Dyson, so c'mon – lay a wet one on me, sucky-face."

"Kenz," Bo groaned, turning to Kenzi with azure eyes. She grabbed Kenzi's chin, turning her face roughly towards her own, and leaned towards her. Kenzi felt the strangely exhausting-yet-exhilarating sensation of having her chi drained in full for the first time. She felt a gently-pulsing glow lodge in her chest, like a warm coal deep within the dying embers of a fire.

"Wow," Kenzi said weakly. "That was—"

"Wow is right," Bo panted. "Kenzi, you're incredible! How did you—"

"So, where exactly are we?" Kenzi asked, changing the subject. "And when do you think D-man and Cleo will get here?"

"Oof!" Cleo's landing, much like Bo's, was all grace, whereas Dyson, much like Kenzi, ended up sprawled out in the grass. While Cleo blew in Kenzi's ear, Dyson sniffed – first the ground, and then the air.

"We're near home," Dyson announced. "It's only a few miles east." He stood, shaking himself off, and went to walk between two large cedar trees when he was thrown back by an invisible force.

"Oh no," Kenzi muttered. "This cannot be good."

"What's wrong, Dyson?" Bo asked nervously. Then she suddenly grew quiet. "Did you hear something?" she asked.

Kenzi began to shake her head, but then she did hear something. It was…moaning, or crying. "Hello?" she called. "Is somebody out there?"

"Kenzi," Bo hissed.

"Sorry, reflex," Kenzi shrugged. Then she gasped, shaking slightly. Something was forcing its way inside her chest – Kenzi really only had room for one set of stuff in her compact body, and it was near excruciating to have this other soul trying to squeeze in beside hers. "This isn't two to a seat, buddy," she choked out. "Get your own damn body!"

_I had one, once_, a voice spoke to her. _But you don't want to hear my story_.

"S-sure I do!" Kenzi said. "Absolutely! I love stories!"

"Kenz, who are you talking to?" Bo asked, leaning over Kenzi nervously. Kenzi tried to comfort Bo, but she could no longer speak. She slowly lost control of all her facilities, and her eyes slid shut as she fell backwards. She could feel, and hear, but she just couldn't do anything about it.

"You say you'll listen?" From behind the blackness of Kenzi's closed lids came a glowing creature swathed in white. She looked young, maybe Kenzi's age, and she looked sad.

"Sure I'll listen," Kenzi offered. "What's up?"

"They call me a _dybbuk_," she said quietly. "My grandmother used to tell me about dybbuks, when I was alive…she told me that they were nasty spirits who inhabited unwilling vessels and stirred up trouble. I suppose that's true, though I don't mean it to be…I don't know why I became _this_." She gestured at herself. "I mean, I thought that when you died you just…it was all over. I wanted it to be over!"

Kenzi swallowed. "Did you…kill yourself?"

The dybbuk nodded. "Yes. I was so sad…I felt as though no one loved me. It's a strange thing, to see your own funeral," she said. "I used to think about it all the time – on good days, it would be a time to witness people who loved me for me, actually acting like they did. On bad days, no one would come. Or worse still, people would come just to tease and bully as they did in life."

"Hey," Kenzi whispered, walking over to the dybbuk. "I know what it's like to be bullied. Trust me, I do. Kids, they used to pick on me all the time. Called me Shrimp Cocktail and Gypsy Queen. I went a whole year without lunch because big kids used to steal mine. I had to go back to school at night and beg the janitor to let me in to get my books because I would leave in the middle of the day. I was scared, a lot," Kenzi admitted. "But I'm not scared anymore."

"Well, it's too late for me now!" the dybbuk yelled. "Be gone!"

Kenzi shot up, able to move and speak again. But now Bo was down for the count.

"Kenzi, what's happening?" Dyson asked her.

"She called herself a dybbuk. Said it was some kind of troublemaker spirit." Kenzi paused. "Dyson, she killed herself. Do think that's why she's—"

"Stuck in Limbo? It's a possibility," he nodded. "I don't know too much about dybbuks. I do know that they don't like talking to men, and generally it's men that have to break the possession. They keep going around until you've figured out what she wants or needs to move on, so keep her talking. Once you do, let me know, and I'll try and remember how to set her free."

"Wait, they keep going around? What does that mean?" Cleo asked.

"She's gonna possess you too, once she's done with Bo," Dyson said tersely.

"This is not what I signed up for!"

Dyson and Kenzi ignored her. "Aye-aye, Chief," Kenzi said to Dyson. "Hey, do you get cell service here? Because Trickster would know what to do."

"Good idea, I'll check." Dyson stood, holding his phone up and out to see if there was any angle that would give him reception.

Kenzi sat for a minute, picking grass to braid, before Bo got up and Cleo went down.

"She said that she used to hurt herself, but it wasn't enough," Bo said with teary eyes. "She said that nothing made the pain go away, not even death."

Kenzi pressed herself into Bo's side. "It's okay, Bo. We're gonna figure this out."

"It's just, I know that hurt," Bo whimpered. "I hate that anyone else has ever had to feel that way."

Kenzi's chin trembled, and she wrapped her arm tightly around Bo's middle. "I know, Bo-Bo. Me too."

Bo leaned down, kissing Kenzi's head. "You make everything better, you know?"

"You too, Bo-dacious. Hey, Dyson says we gotta find out what she wants so she can move out and move on," Kenzi told Bo.

"Roger dodger, _chica_," Bo said. Cleo rose up, then, and Kenzi slumped over.

"I don't like that Cleo very much," the dybbuk said. "You and Bo are much more sympathetic, so I apologize for snapping at you before."

"It's okay. And Cleo's Fae," Kenzi explained. "But she's never not known it like Bo has. So Bo and I can relate to not being top of the food chain."

Kenzi eyed the dybbuk for a moment. "How old are you?"

"I was twenty," she said.

"Man, you missed the best part," Kenzi muttered. Aloud, she said, "So you were what, in college?"

"I was, for a while," the dybbuk said. "But I wasn't when I died. I had to drop out."

"Why?" Kenzi asked.

"Because I was miserable!" the dybbuk wailed. "I was nervous and anxious and upset _all_ the time, everybody hated me, my grades were atrocious – and I was so, so far from home."

"That feeling I can't relate to, unfortunately. Were you and your family close?"

"No, that's what's weird about it," the dybbuk said, a trifle more calmly. "I couldn't wait to get out of there when I turned eighteen. But then it seemed like the lesser of two evils."

"Did you ever…talk to anyone about how you felt?" Kenzi asked tentatively.

But the dybbuk just laughed. "I had therapists from the time I was five," she said. "I was on so many meds sometimes I thought my head would explode. I was diagnosed with anxiety, depression, manic-depression, bipolar, schizophrenia, OCD, ADD, being smothered – I mean, the list goes on. I never felt normal, and I couldn't explain that to anybody."

It was Bo's turn again, and Kenzi took the time to mull over what she'd learned. Kenzi had always felt like she never got _enough_ attention…could it be that the dybbuk had gotten too much – or the wrong kind?

"What did she tell you, Cleo?" Kenzi asked, hoping for another piece of the puzzle.

"Nothing. She's a selfish brat, and good riddance!"

"That is so mean and unfair, you pompous..._pizdu_," Kenzi swore. Dyson turned around.

"Kenzi!"

Kenzi looked up, both astonished and a bit terrified. "You speak Russian?"

"No, but I know your angry voice," he glared. "Play nice."

"Yeah, Kenzi, play nice," Cleo whispered. Kenzi stuck out her tongue.

"I think I know what she wants!" Bo said, waking up.

"To feel normal?" Kenzi asked.

"To be accepted. She was bullied, right, and never felt like she had a community?" Kenzi nodded, and Bo smiled. "So we make her one of ours – show her we care about her."

"That just might work!" Dyson said. "I can't reach Trick, so we're just gonna have to fly solo on this one. But I think I know what to do." He turned to Cleo and began to speak. "Dybbuk, we know you're in there. Leave us in peace. We know you want to be accepted, and you have been – you are part of us now. You may leave, but we will not forget you."

"Is it working?" Bo asked.

"I can't really—" Kenzi didn't get a chance to finish as the dybbuk connected with her a third time.

"God, boys are so dumb," the dybbuk said. "So blind to the obvious."

"What's obvious?" Kenzi asked. It certainly wasn't obvious to her.

"_You don't know me at all_," the dybbuk rasped from Kenzi's throat. "_I may be dead, but I'm not stupid. You won't fool me with your silly words._"

"They're not silly!" Bo said. "They're true! Please, believe me. I know where you've been, and I—"

"_This I know, Bo. I have been inside of you, remember? I have seen the emptiness there. But empathy does not equal acceptance. Acceptance must be shared by all members of the party._"

"Cleo," Bo growled warningly.

"Fine, whatever, I take back what I said about you being selfish," Cleo huffed. "I accept you."

But Kenzi didn't sit up, as the dybbuk never left her body.

"What haven't we done, Dyson?" Kenzi heard Bo ask.

Dyson snapped his fingers. "What did she say? _You don't know me at all_? What's the first thing you learn about a person?"

"What is your name, spirit?" Kenzi asked softly. "Don't you want to rest?"

"I used to love to sing," the dybbuk said, playing with the hem of her dress. "Well, I always loved to sing, but I used to sing happy songs instead of sad ones. And when I would sing, it was like I was a different person. Everyone smiled at me, everyone loved me…music was my everything."

Kenzi deduced that her name had something to do with music, so she began guessing. "Um, Melody?" The dybbuk shook her head, a soft smile playing on her lips. "Harmony? Rhapsody? Symphony? Jazz?"

"Simpler than that," the dybbuk said.

"Song? Music? Lyric?"

The dybbuk shook her head. "It's Hebrew," she hinted.

"Sorry babe, I'm out. The only Hebrew I know is _shalom_, and _mazel tov_," Kenzi said.

"It means song," the dybbuk whispered. "_Shira_."

"Shira, her name is Shira!" Kenzi yelled the minute she sat up. Dyson gathered an unconscious Bo in his arms, holding her close to him. Cleo and Kenzi watched from either side.

"Shira," Dyson whispered. "Shira, can you hear me? Please come out. You've had a hard time of it, and now you can rest. We want to set you free so you can sing to your heart's content. We want to set you free. But you will always be a part of us. You will always have been a part of something. I know that you weren't always appreciated in life, but there is always opportunity to change and grow, even after life. Who knows – there could be a whole group of people just waiting to love you."

Bo's eyes fluttered open, but it wasn't Bo seeing out of them. "_Do you love me_?" Shira asked.

"I love you, Shira," Kenzi answered.

"Me too," Cleo nodded quickly, anxious to be done with this whole thing.

"Of course," Dyson rumbled.

"_Show me_," Shira said, and Bo's eyes glowed blue. Bo's chin rose, and Dyson lowered his face automatically, as if their lips were made of opposite poles. Dyson moved a hand from Bo's back to the side of her face, and he angled her to a better position. When they kissed, there was a burst of white light, and then Bo fell to the ground with Dyson collapsed on top of her.

"Dyson," Bo called softly after a minute, slapping his face. "Dyson, wake up!"

When Dyson didn't budge, Bo turned to Kenzi. "Kenz," Bo grunted. "Can you help roll him off of me?"

"Sure thing, Rock-o Taco." Kenzi and Bo pushed, and Dyson eventually shifted positions enough so Bo could wriggle out from underneath him.

"I am not dragging his furry ass home," Kenzi said, nudging Dyson with her toe.

"Aw, you act all tough, but you secretly lurve him," Bo needled.

"Shut up, of course I do. He's _Dyson_," Kenzi said emphatically.

At Bo's smirk, she added, "Not in _that_ way, you perv! Just in a stinky, annoying, protective older brother sort of a way. He reminds me of how my cousins used to act when we were little."

"As enchanting as this little lovefest is, I have to take my fee and be going," Cleo said. She went up behind Bo and grabbed her around the neck. "She's dying, you know," Cleo said to Kenzi. "And I'll let her die if you don't let her go."

"Hells to the bells no!" Kenzi yelled. "Man, I _knew_ you were bad news." Kenzi rolled her neck around, the cracking noise satisfying her taste for the dramatic.

"Like a human could stop me," Cleo scoffed.

"This is human?" Kenzi asked, swooping her arms out. Her palms faced up, and multicolored sparks shot out of them like an Independence Day show.

"But I – Dyson said that—"

"How'd ya like me now, bitch?" Kenzi asked cockily, pulling Geraldine from her purse.

"Kenzi, don't—" Bo asked. Bo stomped on Cleo's instep, causing her to let go of Bo's neck. Bo spun around and unstrapped Dyson's dagger from her thigh – Kenzi didn't even want to think about how or when it had gotten there.

"Two against one?" Bo asked. "Sounds fair to me, right Kenz?"

"More than generous, really," Kenzi agreed.

"How are you—" Cleo was shocked.

"I get by with a little help from my friends," Bo quipped, bumping hips with Kenzi. "Chi soup is good for the Succubus soul!"

Cleo lunged at them in fury, but Bo was ready. With Kenzi holding Geraldine aloft to prevent escape, Bo stroked Cleo's face and neck.

"You really are pretty," Cleo moaned.

"Gee, thanks," Bo smiled. Then she opened her mouth and pulled the chi out of Cleo. Not all of it, but most. Cleo was Fae, she could handle it. And if not…well, they weren't on home turf.

"Bo? Kenzi? What happened?" Dyson was stirring, and he sat up slowly.

"Nothing, Wolfman," Kenzi said brightly. "You just got a little punch drunk on Succu-smoochies."

"Smooth, Kenzi," Bo said, slapping her arm.

"Ow!"

"We kissed to set Shira free. You remember?"

"Oh, right," Dyson nodded. "Right, of course."

Bo offered a hand to Dyson, as did Kenzi. When they'd gotten him to his feet, he said, "Let's go home, shall we?"

Kenzi and Bo each threaded an arm through the crooks of Dyson's elbows, and they began to ease on down the road.


End file.
